Morphological variation of Narcissus serotinus L. s.l. (Amaryllidaceae) in the Iberian Peninsula

Abstract

A morphological study of Narcissus serotinus L. s.l. was carried out in 40 populations, mainly located in the southwest Iberian Peninsula, by the application of ordination and classification analysis to 42 vegetative and flower characters. Wide morphological variability was found in the species. A total of 19 characters clearly differentiated two groups as distinct species, but intraspecific variation, associated with geographical distribution, was found. One of the species aligned with N. serotinus L. s.s. , having a six-lobed yellow corona and one flower per scape, with a distribution restricted to the south-west Iberian Peninsula and north-west Morocco. The other species, distributed widely throughout the circum-Mediterranean region, and characterized by a three-lobed, orange-brownish corona and one to three flowers per scape, matched the description of N. obsoletus (Haw.) Steud. The historical application of this pre-Linnean name, given to a Spanish plant by Parkinson in 1629, and used subsequently by various authors, is doubtful, and thus its typification was necessary. Two other populations identified as N. elegans (Haw.) Spach were included in this study as a reference, and allowed characters in N. obsoletus , intermediate between those of N. serotinus and N. elegans , to be found, suggesting a hybridization process occurring in its area of origin.

Population Genetics Methods Applied to a Species Delimitation Problem: Endemic Trumpet Daffodils (NarcissusSectionPseudonarcissi) from the Southern Iberian Peninsula

“…5A), as denoted by the medians of between-group F st values (0.61) being significantly greater than the medians of withingroup F st distributions (0.40). In addition, the virtual absence of admixed individuals in the mountain range where the green and blue groups occur in sympatry (Cazorla-Segura-Las Villas) suggests that despite instances of hybridization being known for this genus (Blanchard 1990;Díaz-Lifante and Andrés-Camacho 2007;Marques et al 2007Marques et al , 2010Díaz-Lifante et al 2009) and the occasional co-occurrence of plants from both groups in adjacent habitats within this area, some type of reproductive isolation between them may be operating. Fifth, the comparison of the relationship between genetic and geographic distances revealed substantial differences between the within-and between-group regression lines ( fig.…”

“…The taxonomy of Narcissus is unsettled and problematic (Webb 1980;Blanchard 1990;Mathew 2002;Zonneveld 2008;Aedo, forthcoming); in particular, the trumpet daffodils (section Pseudonarcissi) are one of the most controversial groups of the genus and are a clear example of the confounding views on both the discrimination of taxa and the assignment of rank (see below). In fact, the reasons for this wide discrepancy among studies may reflect, among other processes, recent phylogenetic divergence, ongoing differentiation, high phenotypic plasticity, hybridization, or some complex combination of these (Pérez- Barrales et al 2006;Díaz-Lifante and Andrés-Camacho 2007;Hodgins and Barrett 2007;Díaz-Lifante et al 2009). Irrespective of the mechanisms responsible for this complexity, however, tracing species boundaries in such complex groups is a challenge unless the patterns and causes of differentiation are assessed.…”

Insights into Neogene Mediterranean biogeography based on phylogenetic relationships of mountain and lowland lineages of Narcissus (Amaryllidaceae)

“…Numerous attempts at a Narcissus classification have been published, but the genus has never been properly monographed (but see Haworth, 1831 and Pugsley, 1933). Problems faced by taxonomists are mostly related to the biological features of Narcissus , such as continuous speciation via incomplete morphological differentiation across populations of some species, hybridization and polyploidy (Fernandes, 1968, 1975; Webb, 1980; Brandham & Kirton, 1987; Díaz Lifante & Andrés Camacho, 2007). Chromosome studies carried out by Fernandes (1951, 1968, 1975) have allowed a better understanding of the nature of hybrids, many of them being virtually sterile (e.g.…”

The systematic value of nuclear DNA content for all species of Narcissus L. (Amaryllidaceae)

“…Knowing the amounts of nuclear DNA this was easy to spot, especially so, as these are all three autumn flowering species. Lifante and Camacho (2007) did extensive morphological measurements on these taxa and concluded that, apart from the two parents a third form, a hybrid, was involved. They did not refer to the earlier work of Donnison-Morgan et al (2006).…”

“…The systematic value of nuclear DNA content for all species of Narcissus L. (Amaryllidaceae) 111 The systematic value of nuclear DNA content for all species of Narcissus L. (Amaryllidaceae) 113 The systematic value of nuclear DNA content for all species of Narcissus L. (Amaryllidaceae) 115 The systematic value of nuclear DNA content for all species of Narcissus L. (Amaryllidaceae) 117 (Lifante and Camacho 2007). However this application is doubtful as they do not make a distinction between the diploid hybrid N. 9 obsoletus (N. elegans 9 N. serotinus) ( Table 2) found as solitary specimen amidst its parents in Morocco (Maire 1959) and its widespread tetraploid form N. miniatus (Table 1).…”