Utility of the Internal Transcribed Spacers of the 18S-5.8S-26S Nuclear Ribosomal DNA in Land Plant Systematics with Special Emphasis on Bryophytes

in Plant Genome: Biodiversity and Evolution—Vol. 2, Part B (2006)

A GIS-based survey for the conservation of bryophytes at the landscape scale

in Biological Conservation (2005), 121(2), 189-194

Geographical information system (GIS) data on landscape features and land use were collected to predict bryophyte diversity and conservation value in order to determine the factors that favour bryophytes ... [more ▼]

Geographical information system (GIS) data on landscape features and land use were collected to predict bryophyte diversity and conservation value in order to determine the factors that favour bryophytes at a large geographical scale and propose the relevant conservation measures. Total species diversity and diversity in species of high conservation value were highly correlated, and the landscape features promoting them were the proportion of military lands, steep slopes, and broadleaf woodland. Military lands seemed to be especially important for the conservation of endangered species highly specialized to open habitats maintained by the appropriate level of disturbance. Woodland cover was also as a key factor for bryophyte diversity but landscape heterogeneity, such as steep slopes with a range of contrasting ecological conditions, was required to reach the highest species numbers. The GIS-based approach presented here may help focusing the attention on sites exhibiting the appropriate landscape features in terms of conservation, which is especially relevant in the context of the European network 'Natura 2000' for designating, conserving, and managing the sites of high biological value. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. [less ▲]

Phylogeny, biogeography, and the evolution of life-history traits in Leucadendron (Proteaceae)

in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution (2004), 33(3), 845-860

Leucadendron is a moderately large genus of Proteaccae almost entirely restricted to the Cape Floristic Region of southern Africa. The genus is unusual in being dioecious and sexually dimorphic. ITS ... [more ▼]

Leucadendron is a moderately large genus of Proteaccae almost entirely restricted to the Cape Floristic Region of southern Africa. The genus is unusual in being dioecious and sexually dimorphic. ITS sequence data were obtained from 62 of the 96 currently recognized taxa (85 species and 11 subspecies). Phylogenetic analyses were conducted under Maximum Likelihood and parsimony and resolved nine groups of species with varying degrees of bootstrap support, but relationships between these groups are largely unsupported. The phylogeny conflicts with the current taxonomic arrangement, which is based mainly on fruit morphology. The two sections of the genus, Alatosperma and Leucadendron, and several subsections within these sections, are resolved as non-monophyletic. This means that taxonomically important characters (such as fruit shape) have evolved multiple times, as the species with nutlike fruit (resolved into two of the nine groups) appear to have evolved independently from ancestors with winged fruit. Based on the topology obtained, the life history traits of anemophily, myrmechochory, and re-sprouting have also originated multiple times. Dispersal-Vicariance (DIVA) analysis suggests that the genus had an ancestral area in the Karoo Mountain and Southeastern phytogeographic centres of endemism in the southwestern Cape. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. [less ▲]

Evolution of multiple paralogous adenosine kinase genes in the moss genus Hygroamblystegium: phylogenetic implications

in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution (2004), 31(2), 505-516

Maximum likelihood analyses of DNA sequences from two chloroplast regions, trnL-trnF and atpB-rbcL, and the internal transcribed spacers of ISS-5.8S-26S rRNA gene array, were performed to resolve species ... [more ▼]

Maximum likelihood analyses of DNA sequences from two chloroplast regions, trnL-trnF and atpB-rbcL, and the internal transcribed spacers of ISS-5.8S-26S rRNA gene array, were performed to resolve species relationships within the moss genus Hygroamblystegium. Constraining morphospecies to monophyly resulted in significantly less likely trees for H. tenax, but not for the other species. The lack of support for most clades and the partial incongruence among topologies necessitated the use of another independent, more variable region, namely the adenosine kinase gene (adk). Sequences for adk were polymorphic but were present as multiple copies within individuals. making parology a problem for phylogenetic analyses. Adk evolution was reconstructed using a reconciled gene tree approach in which duplications and losses were minimized in the context of ail estimate of the species tree derived from the analysis of the cp and nrDNA sequence data. Additional resolution of the species tree was then obtained by searching for reconstructions that further reduced adk duplications and losses. All the traditionally recognized morphospecies appeared to be polyphyletic in the resulting tree. Together with previous data from different molecular markers, the results Support the interpretation that Hygroamblystegium represents a recent radiation in which molecular and morphological evolution have been uncoupled. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. [less ▲]

A SIMPLE TAXONOMIC TREATMENT FOR A COMPLICATED EVOLUTIONARY STORY: THE GENUS HYGROAMBLYSTEGIUM (HYPNALES, AMBLYSTEGIACEAE)

in Monographs in Systematic Botany (2004), 98

The Bryophyte Layer In A Calcareous Grassland After A Decade Of Contrasting Mowing Regimes

in Biological Conservation (2004), 117(1),

Differentiation in DNA fingerprinting and morphology among species of the pleurocarpous moss genus, Rhytidiadelphus (Hylocomiaceae)

in Taxon (2003), 52

Patterns Of Bryophyte Diversity And Rarity At A Regional Scale

in Biodiversity & Conservation (2003), 12(3),

Taxonomic assessment, distribution, and ecology of Tortula vahliana var. minor (Pottiaceae, Bryopsida)

in Journal of Bryology (2002), 24

The Effects Of Environmental Variation On Bryophytes At A Regional Scale

in Ecography (2002), 25(5),