Abstract Detail
Bryological and Lichenological Section/ABLS Nadel, Miko [1], Desjardin, Dennis [1]. A review of the lichen genus Usnea from São Tomé and Príncipe using morphology, molecular data and chemotaxonomy. A systematic review of the lichen genus Usnea from the remote, under-explored islands of São Tomé and Príncipe (STP) in tropical West Africa is presented. Morphology is analyzed from specimens collected in 2012 and 2013 and compared to historical collections from STP currently held in several European herbaria. Molecular analysis of the ITS rDNA region to better understand the phylogenetic relationship of the Usnea of São Tomé and Príncipe is performed. The additional component of chemical analysis, using thin layer chromatography, is conducted to help clarify taxonomic positions of species and chemical races within species. Preliminary findings indicate historical discrepancies in species identification from the African islands, as well as several additional species that were not noted in the collections from the late 19th century. Initial phylogenetic testing indicates a minimum of eight species; only one of these has a high affinity with any of the species noted from historical accounts of the islands. Usnea speciosa Motyka is a species that was named from a holotypic specimen collected in STP during the late 19th century. The review provides an opportunity to compare the morphology and chemistry of potential specimens of U. speciosa with the type specimen and, based on molecular data, support or show lack of support for the naming of U. speciosa (Motyka, 1936-1938). Phylogenetic analysis and its comparison with morphological and chemical components provide a more complete systematic analysis of this genus and helps to clarify historical records.
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Related Links:
Island Biodiversity Race
1 - San Francisco State University, Biology, 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA, 94132, USA
Keywords:
Usnea
West Africa
Sao Tome and Principe
chromatography
lichenology
Gulf of Guinea
tropical islands
Phylogenetics.
Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for Sections
Session: P
Location: Hall D/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2015
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: PBR007
Abstract ID:698
Candidate for Awards:None | 
