Dataset Information

Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago.

ABSTRACT: Isolated oceanic islands are characterized by patterns of biological diversity different from that on nearby continental mainlands. Isolation can provide the opportunity for evolutionary divergence, but also set the stage for hybridization between related taxa arriving from different sources. Ferns disperse by haploid spores, which are produced in large numbers and can travel long distances in air currents, enabling these plants to become established on most oceanic islands. Here, we examine the origins and patterns of diversity of the cosmopolitan fern genus Pteridium (Dennstaedtiaceae; bracken) on the Galapagos Islands. We use nucleotide sequences from two plastid genes, and two nuclear gene markers, to examine phylogeography of Pteridium on the Galapagos Islands. We incorporate data from a previous study to provide a worldwide context. We also sampled new specimens from South and Central America. We used flow cytometry to estimate genome size of some accessions. We found that both plastid and nuclear haplotypes fall into two distinct clades, consistent with a two-diploid-species taxonomy of P. aquilinum and P. esculentum. As predicted, the allotetraploid P. caudatum possesses nuclear haplotypes from both diploid species. Samples from the Galapagos include P. esculentum subsp. arachnoideum, P. caudatum and possible hybrids between them. Multiple Pteridium taxa were also observed growing together at some sites. We find evidence for multiple origins of Pteridium on the Galapagos Islands and multiple origins of tetraploid P. caudatum throughout its range in Central and South America. We also posit that P. caudatum may include recent diploid hybrids, backcrosses to P. esculentum, as well as allotetraploid plants. The Galapagos Islands are positioned close to the equator where they can receive dispersing propagules from both hemispheres. This may partly explain the high levels of diversity found for this cosmopolitan fern on these islands.

SUBMITTER: Wolf PG

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4662730 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago.

Wolf Paul G PG Rowe Carol A CA Der Joshua P JP Schilling Martin P MP Visger Clayton J CJ Thomson John A JA

AoB PLANTS 20151020

Isolated oceanic islands are characterized by patterns of biological diversity different from that on nearby continental mainlands. Isolation can provide the opportunity for evolutionary divergence, but also set the stage for hybridization between related taxa arriving from different sources. Ferns disperse by haploid spores, which are produced in large numbers and can travel long distances in air currents, enabling these plants to become established on most oceanic islands. Here, we examine the ...[more]

PMID: 26487677

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Project description:BACKGROUND AND AIMS:Two Phragmites australis taxa are recognized in Europe: P. australis ssp. altissimus, also known as Phragmites isiaca, in the Mediterranean region and P. australis in the temperate region. Another taxonomic group in the Mediterranean is Phragmites frutescens. European genotypes are diverse genetically, cytologically and morphologically, and are related to African, Asiatic and American genotypes. We investigated chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) diversity in Europe and defined the current borders of the European gene pool. METHODOLOGY:We analysed chloroplast variation with parsimony and genetic distance methods, and compared it with that of nuclear amplified fragment length polymorphism and microsatellites. We also investigated the phenological pattern of 188 genotypes collected worldwide in a common garden in Denmark. We assumed that non-flowering genotypes could indicate climatic, geographic and/or reproductive barriers to dispersal and would have been recorded in the genetic pattern as groups genetically isolated from, or within, the European pool. PRINCIPAL RESULTS:The European P. australis gene pool extends from North America to the Far East and South Africa. However, African and North American genotypes are differentiating from the European genotypes. Mediterranean P. australis is genetically different from temperate P. australis and shares several similarities with Phragmites mauritianus in Africa and Phragmites karka in Asia. Phragmites frutescens shares the cpDNA sequences with both these tropical species. Two DNA bands can distinguish Mediterranean P. australis from P. frutescens and P. mauritianus and from temperate P. australis, and reveal possible hybrids among these species in the Mediterranean region. Phenological data confirmed possible gene flow within the temperate region of Europe, whereas the Mediterranean genotypes did not set inflorescences in Denmark, suggesting reproductive barriers between temperate and Mediterranean P. australis. CONCLUSIONS:European P. australis appears as one of four main Phragmites groups known in the world. Further research is needed to understand the implications of long-distance dispersal at the population level.

Project description:BackgroundAs in most bryozoans, taxonomy and systematics of species in the genus Reteporella Busk, 1884 (family Phidoloporidae) has hitherto almost exclusively been based on morphological characters. From the central North Atlantic Azores Archipelago, nine Reteporella species have historically been reported, none of which have as yet been revised. Aiming to characterise the diversity and biogeographic distribution of Azorean Reteporella species, phylogenetic reconstructions were conducted on a dataset of 103 Azorean Reteporella specimens, based on the markers cytochrome C oxidase subunit 1, small and large ribosomal RNA subunits. Morphological identification was based on scanning electron microscopy and complemented the molecular inferences.ResultsOur results reveal two genetically distinct Azorean Reteporella clades, paraphyletic to eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean taxa. Moreover, an overall concordance between morphological and molecular species can be shown, and the actual bryozoan diversity in the Azores is greater than previously acknowledged as the dataset comprises three historically reported species and four putative new taxa, all of which are likely to be endemic. The inclusion of Mediterranean Reteporella specimens also revealed new species in the Adriatic and Ligurian Sea, whilst the inclusion of additional phidoloporid taxa hints at the non-monophyly of the genus Reteporella.ConclusionBeing the first detailed genetic study on the genus Reteporella, the high divergence levels inferred within the genus Reteporella and family Phidoloporidae calls for the need of further revision. Nevertheless, the overall concordance between morphospecies and COI data suggest the potential adequacy of a 3% cut-off to distinguish Reteporella species. The discovery of new species in the remote Azores Archipelago as well as in the well-studied Mediterranean Sea indicates a general underestimation of bryozoan diversity. This study constitutes yet another example of the importance of integrative taxonomical approaches on understudied taxa, contributing to cataloguing genetic and morphological diversity.

Dataset Information

Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago.

Publications

Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago.

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