Needle structure in three Juniperus taxa indigenous to Slovakia

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Dátum

2025

Názov časopisu

ISSN časopisu

Názov zväzku

Vydavateľ

Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute : Basel

ISBN

ISSN

1999-4907

Abstrakt

Needle structure was analyzed in three Juniperus communis taxa from different localities in central Slovakia. The main aim was to test the hybrid origin hypothesis of J. communis nothovar. intermedia (Schur) Nyman, defined as a cross between J. communis L. ssp. communis and J. communis ssp. nana (Hook.) Syme. While DNA-based analyses remain the most reliable tool for inferring evolutionary history, comparative needle morphology can provide complementary evidence, including diagnostic traits for taxonomic delimitation. In this study, we evaluated three morphometric and sixteen anatomical needle traits, measured via microscopy in ten shrubs per taxon. The analyses indicated that most traits in nothovar. intermedia matched one of the parents, with only two traits proving strongly diagnostic, separating all three taxa: needle length, which showed an intermediate mean phenotype in nothovar. intermedia (R2 = 0.824, p = 0.011; between parents), and vascular bundle height, which displayed a transgressive pattern (R2 = 0.552, p = 0.031; between parents). Although the diagnostic value of individual traits for hybrid detection was generally weak, a phylogenetic network analysis based on six diagnostic traits that separated individuals of the parental taxa provided evidence for reticulate evolution. These results support the hybrid origin of J. communis nothovar. intermedia and highlight needle traits with potential value for distinguishing ssp. communis and ssp. nana in natural populations, which may assist in taxonomic delimitation and inform future conservation assessments.

Popis

In: Forests. Basel : Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 2025. ISSN 1999-4907. Vol. 16, no. 9 (2025), art. no. 1406, pp. 1-11.

Kľúčové slová

rod borievka, genus Juniperus, taxa Juniperus, ihličie, needles, acus, hybridity, štruktúra, identifikácia, identification

Výstup z projektu

VEGA 2/0005/23 Genetická analýza borievok Juniperus communis var. communis, J. sibirica a ich predpokladaných hybridov J. communis var. intermedia na Slovensku PANGEOS CA22136 Pan-European Network of Green Deal Agriculture and Forestry Earth Observation Science Drive4SIFood 313011V336 Dopytovo-orientovaný výskum pre udržateľné a inovatívne potraviny

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CC BY Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. International
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess