ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess

Abstract Number: 3087
Poster No. = 647


ADAPTIVE RADIATION AND PHYLOGENY OF PACIFIC CYRTANDRA (GESNERIACEAE) BASED ON MOLECULAR AND MORPHOLOGICAL DATA


JF Smith*, QCB CronkÝ, M Kiehn§ and WL Wagner¶. *Boise State University, Boise ID, ÝRoyal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, United Kingdom, §Institute of Botany and Botanical Garden, University of Vienna, Austria, ¶Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC.


Cyrtandra is one of the largest plant genera in the Pacific basin. The insular species are monophyletic based on ITS sequence data, and all bear berries, an efficient means of long-distance dispersal. Continental species are capsular and form a separate clade. The 56 species endemic to Hawaii have been viewed as the result of 4-6 introductions, but molecular data show they are monophyletic. Of 75 putative hybrids, 17 have been confirmed by RAPD data, most are intersectional. Their phylogenetic distribution implies that barriers to reproduction within sublineages have been large enough to isolate species, or small enough to lead to rapid hybridization.

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