Abstract Detail

Systematics Section/ASPT

Wolfe, Andrea [1], Stone, Benjamin [2], Padmalwar, Niharika [2], Blischak, Paul [3], Kubatko, Laura [4].

Hyobanche sanguinea (Orobanchaceae): there’s more than meets the eye.

Hyobanche (Orobanchaceae) is a small holoparasitic genus endemic to southern Africa, containing eight species. The most widespread species is H. sanguinea, distributed from coast-to-coast and from Namibia to the southern tip of Africa. Hyobanche sanguinea has a floral morphology consisting of a fused, hairy, curved and galeate corolla, and the stigma prominently exserted. Generally, if a specimen of Hyobanche met these criteria, it was designated as H. sanguinea in herbarium collections. This is partly the result of the characteristic way in which dried specimens appear – brown or black masses of stuck together flowers. Populations of Hyobanche sanguinea observed in the field have considerable morphological variation (flower color and size, inflorescence shape, pattern of sepal fusion, etc), which is consistent within a geographic region. These observations were the motivation for conducting morphological and molecular analyses to determine if H. sanguinea represents a cryptic species complex. We used AFLP markers and DNA sequences from the plastid and nuclear genomes to assess patterns of population structure and the relationships among different populations collected from across the range of H. sanguinea. Ninety-five populations representing nearly 800 individuals from all species of Hyobanche were included in the molecular analyses. Morphological observations from populations collected in each region were also made. Our results reveal that geographically distinct populations of H. sanguinea exhibit clear genetic differentiation, which is correlated with morphological differences among these populations. These findings suggest that H. sanguinea represents a complex with four or more species.

Related Links:
Wolfe Lab - Hyobanche research

1 - Ohio State University, Department Of Ecology, Evolution, And Organismal Biology, 318 W. 12th Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210-1293, USA
2 - Ohio State University, Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, 318 W. 12th Ave, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA
3 - Ohio State University, Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, 456 Aronoff Laboratory, 318 W 12th Avenue, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA
4 - Ohio State University, Statistics, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

Keywords:
parasitic plant
holoparasitic plant
Orobanchaceae
Hyobanche
AFLP
Species delimitation
cryptic.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 47
Location: Salon 3/The Shaw Conference Centre
Date: Tuesday, July 28th, 2015
Time: 2:30 PM
Number: 47005
Abstract ID:721
Candidate for Awards:None