Original Research
Developmental variation in a species of Isoglossa (Acanthaceae: Ruellioideae) over a season
Submitted: 14 August 2008 | Published: 14 August 2008
About the author(s)
D. Poriazis, C.E. Moss Herbarium. School of Animal. Plant and Environmental Sciences, South AfricaK. Balkwill,
Full Text:
PDF (1MB)Abstract
In his appraisal of Isoglossa Oerst., Clarke (1901) placed major emphasis on the sizes of leaves and inflorescences in the key to species, but efforts to sort herbarium material have shown a great deal of variation in leaf size and inflorescence length that is very difficult to interpret. Specimens of a species of Isoglossa were collected from wild subpopulations from the Hartebeespoort Dam and Hartebeeshoek areas, at intervals over a season. Leaves and inflorescences were measured, and frequencies of hair types on bracts and calyces were recorded photographically Results indicate that leaf size within a species increases over the vegetative phase of the plant and that inflorescence size within a species increases over the reproductive phase of the plant. Therefore, caution should be applied when these characters are used for species identification in Isoglossa. Bract and calyx indumenta also change over a season, thus making it necessary to use wisdom when applying this character taxonomically.
Keywords
Metrics
Total abstract views: 2078Total article views: 2501
Crossref Citations
1. Predator satiation and recruitment in a mast fruiting monocarpic forest herb
Zivanai Tsvuura, Megan E. Griffiths, Richard M. Gunton, Michael J. Lawes
Annals of Botany vol: 107 issue: 3 first page: 379 year: 2011
doi: 10.1093/aob/mcq262