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Abstract Detail



Systematics

LITT, AMY [1], Huang, Yi [2], McCarthy, Elizabeth [1], Burge, Dylan [3], Jia, Arthur [2], Morrison, Glen R [4], Parker, Tom [5], Sanders, Andrew [2], Stoughton, Thomas [6].

Make sense of manzanitas.

Manzanitas (Arctostaphylos spp.; Ericaceae) are iconic shrubs of the California chaparral, distinctive for their red bark, sinuously twisting branches, erect green leaves, and pendant urn-shaped pink-to-white flowers. Like many taxa of the California Floristic Province (CFP), a diversity hotspot, this group experienced recent rapid radiation, producing morphological diversity with little genetic differentiation. There are over 100 described taxa of manzanitas, nearly all of which are confined to the CFP; 75% are endemic to the state of California, and 50% are listed as rare or endangered. Many of the species are known from only a few populations, with a high proportion of edaphic endemics that are restricted to narrow ranges subject to catastrophic loss. Manzanitas are characterized by polyploidy and extensive hybridization; taxonomically the group is an infamous hairball, and identification even to species, much less subspecies, can be difficult and confusing. A recent study by Wahlert et al. found that 44 taxa had identical ITS sequences, indicating extremely low levels of genetic divergence, and suggesting that morphological differences may be due to plasticity or to changes at only a few loci. The lack of genetic divergence coupled with hybridization, local adaptation, and morphological variability make this a good group in which to explore the concept of species in a diverse and recently radiated group. We are currently focusing on A. glandulosa in southern CA. This species has 8 described subspecies in this region (with two more in Baja California), which are notoriously difficult to tell apart. Some geographically distinct populations can be identified to subspecies, but other populations consist of individuals with varied morphology that are not identifiable to a specific subspecies. Our goal is to determine if A. glandulosa shows genetic sub-structure, and if so, if genetic clusters are correlated with subspecies descriptions, geography, morphology, and/or environmental factors. We have sampled A. glandulosa across southern CA and to perform RAD-Seq analyses and will discuss the results of morphometric analyses.


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1 - University of California, Riverside, Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, 900 University Ave., Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
2 - University of California, Riverside, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92521, United States
3 - University of California, Los Angeles
4 - California State Polytechnic University Pomona, 3801 W. Temple, Pomona, CA, 91768, USA
5 - San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Avenue, Department Of Biology, San Francisco, CA, 94132, USA
6 - Plymouth State University, Center for the Environment, 17 High Street, MSC 63, Samuel Read Hall 217, Plymouth, NH, 03264-1595, USA

Keywords:
Manzanita
Arctostaphylos
RAD-Seq
Hybridization
Radiation.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 37, Systematics II: Caryophyllids & Basal Asterids
Location: Sundance 4/Omni Hotel
Date: Wednesday, June 28th, 2017
Time: 11:15 AM
Number: 37005
Abstract ID:348
Candidate for Awards:None


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