New Zealand Journal of Botany abstracts
The generic position of Austrofestuca littoralis and the reinstatement
of Hookerochloa and Festucella (Poaceae) based on evidence from
nuclear (ITS) and chloroplast (trnL-trnF) DNA sequences
A. M. Hunter
D. A. Orlovich*
Department of Botany
University of Otago
P.O. Box 56
Dunedin, New Zealand
K. M. Lloyd
W. G. Lee
Landcare Research
Private Bag 1930
Dunedin, New Zealand
D. J. Murphy
Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne
Birdwood Avenue
South Yarra, Victoria 3141, Australia
* Author for correspondence
Abstract The segregation of the grass genus Austrofestuca
from Festuca has been debated because in some respects Austrofestuca
is morphologically similar to Poa. Analyses of DNA sequence information
from nuclear (internal transcribed spacer) and chloroplast (trnL-trnF)
genomes indicate that Austrofestuca is not monophyletic. Austrofestuca
littoralis is closely related to Poa, while A. eriopoda
and A. hookeriana are placed in a clade containing Arctagrostis,
Dupontia, and Arctophila. Whilst Austrofestuca littoralis
is nested within the Poa clade, our data do not exclude the possibility
thatA. littoralis is sister to Poa. A range of morphological
characters supports the differentiation of A. eriopoda and A. hookeriana
fromA. littoralis. We reinstate the genera Festucella and
Hookerochloato accommodate A. eriopoda and A. hookeriana,
respectively.
Keywords Austrofestuca littoralis; A. hookeriana;
A. eriopoda; Hookerochloa; Festucella; Festuca;
Poa; Pooideae; Poeae; internal transcribed spacer region; trnL-trnF
intergenic spacer; phylogeny; taxonomy
B03021; Received 30 June 2003; accepted 1 March 2004; Online publication
date 3 June 2004
New Zealand Journal of Botany, 2004, Vol. 42: 253-262
0028-825X/04/4202-0253 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2004
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