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Significance of fruit and seed morphology in current taxonomy of the genus Iberis L. (Brassicaceae) in Turkey

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Jun 01, 2022 version files 33.69 KB

Abstract

Fruit and seed morphology of 10 taxa belonging to the genus Iberis (Brassicaceae) in Turkey were investigated with stereo microscopy (SM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), in order to understand and check their diagnostic significance at generic and spesific level. Fruits and seeds of Iberis species were photographed and examined to evaluate different characteristics including fruit size, shape, color, indumentum, surface ornamentation, style length, sinus width, wing width, septum length, and also seed size, shape, color, surface ornamentation, cell types, anticlinal and periclinal cell wall features. In addition, cluster analysis and principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) were performed to reveal the similarities between the related taxa in terms of seed and fruit morphology. According to fruit morphology, Iberis taxa in Turkey are divided into three main groups particularly by fruit shapes, those are ovate, ovate-obovate and ovate-orbicular. In the present study SM photographs of both immature and mature fruits of relevant species were also provided for the first time. Style length, which is one of the most important features between some Iberis taxa was taken into consideration in the study. There are three types of seed shapes, those are inequilateral obovate, broadly obovate and inequilateral elliptic. The fruit size limits of I. simplex were also been expanded. The UPGMA tree topology of cluster analysis based on a total of 20 fruit and seed characters presents the current taxonomical classification of the taxa in Turkey, which is updated in this study. An identification key for the genus Iberis in Turkey was provided in the light of current data.