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Type: Article
Published: 2019-04-11
Page range: 101–116
Abstract views: 30
PDF downloaded: 1

Structure of the petioles and costae of Mexican and Central American species of Pteris (Polypodiopsida, Pteridaceae)

Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Red de Biodiversidad y Sistemática, Xalapa, Veracruz 91000, México Instituto de Biotecnología y Ecología Aplicada, Universidad Veracruzana, Zona Universitaria, Xalapa, Veracruz, 91090, México
Unit of Botany, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Avda. José Antonio Nováis, 12. 28040-Madrid, Spain
Unit of Botany, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Avda. José Antonio Nováis, 12. 28040-Madrid, Spain
Instituto de Neuroetología, Universidad Veracruzana. Universidad Veracruzana, Dr. Luis Castelazo s.n., Col. Industrial Ánimas, Xalapa, Veracruz, 91190, México
anatomy ferns taxonomy vascular bundles xylem Pteridophytes

Abstract

Given the taxonomic complexity of the genus Pteris in the Neotropics, the present work aims to collect information about the anatomy of the petioles and the costae of native, adventitious, and introduced Mexican and Central American species of Pteris, and to analyse its taxonomic potential. We collected fresh and dried samples from 26 species, making histological sections by hand. With the naked eye or with a dissection microscope, the colour and size of the axes, and the characters of the awns were recorded. Other characters (indument, anatomy, specifically the stele) were observed in a compound microscope. The type of stele of the petiole, characterized by the shape of xylem, appeared to be an important taxonomic character because it presents a remarkable correlation with some of the groups formed by spore type. Some of these groups of Mesoamerican species of Pteris, formed by means of morphological criteria (petiole xylem + spore) fit very well certain clades established by means of molecular characters.