XVI International Botanical Congess
To date, very few phylogenetic analyses have been done on the Euphorbiaceae family or subfamilies therein. We are particularly interested in the placement of Croton within the subfamily Crotonoideae. The subfamily Crotonoideae contains 66 genera and is divided into 12 tribes. Within this subfamily, Croton is part of a large clade with 54 genera, all having inapurturate pollen. The combination of inapurturate pollen with crotonoid sculpturing is extremely rare in angiosperms and thus this inapurturate crotonoid group is thought to be monophyletic. Phylogenetic analyses were performed on this inapurturate clade using morphological and anatomical characters. Results from these analyses and the position of Croton within the inapurturate clade will be discussed.