A new species of Veronica (Plantaginaceae) from Western Iran

A new species, Veronica kurdistanica (Plantaginaceae), is described and illustrated. It grows on limestone cliffs in mountainous alpine areas of western Iran (Kurdistan province). The new species belongs to the species group of V. kurdica and is considered to be closely related to V. daranica, V. khorassanica and V. kurdica, with which the new species is compared. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of nrDNA (ITS) region confirms this relationship. Veronica kurdistanica is distinguished from the mentioned species by its glandular indumentum, length and shape of leaves and bracts, number of flowers per raceme, length and width of calyx and corolla, and size of capsules and seeds

Data from: A note on phytogeography of the flora of Genu and Homag; two mountains with an Irano-Turanian entity in the Saharo-Sindian regional zone, S Iran

The Saharo-Sindian regional zone encompasses the flat and arid areas of North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, southern Iran and the deserts of Pakistan and W India. There are some scattered mountains situated within this area like Hoggar in Sahara, Saint Catherine in Sinai and Genu and Homag in southern Iran. These highlands serve as interglacial refugia for cold adapted plant species. In the present study, phytogeographical patterns and relationships of the flora of Genu and Homag mountains are assessed and discussed in comparison to the phytogegraphy of the flora of low-lying Hormoz Island. According to chorological assesments of the flora, Genu and Homag mountains belong to theIrano-Turanian region with 59% of the species restricted to this area. However the surrounding lowland plains are part of the Saharo-Sindian area with a rather high proportion of the widespread species (17%) and Somalia-Masai linking elements (20%). It is noteworthy that several Turanian enclaves also occur in the lowland zone. Furthermore, the distributional evidences imply that the mountainous Irano-Turkestanian region is an integrated area which is supposedly distinct from the Turanian lowland areas in the North and the Saharo-Sindian lowland areas in the South. On the other hand, the expansive floras of Turanian and Saharo-Sindian regions are linked to each other. Endemic species in lowland areas in S Iran are mostly either frost sensitive vicariants of cold adapted Turanian species or of Saharo-Sindian origins, while the highland endemics in the area trace their origins to the Irano-turkestanian region

Floristic composition correlates with bioclimatic condition. Occurrence of several Mediterranean elements in southeast of Iran

Iran lies within three major phytogeographical regions including the Euro-Siberian, Irano-Turanian and Saharo-Sindian regions. There are many microclimates and ecological niches in different parts of the country especially along the transitional and ecotone zones. The Mediterranean xeric oceanic (Mxo) microbioclimate is a noteworthy climatic condition which covers the lowland areas of the Mediterranean basin and surprisingly occurs also in three small patches in Iran, including the Sefid-Rud valley, southern foothills of Khabr Mountain and several valleys of western Jebal-e Barez Mountain range. The latter region is the subject of the present study. Unexpected occurrences of several Mediterranean species such as Cercis siliquastrum, Myrtus communis, Linaria iranica and Melissa officinalis are confirmed from this region and their distributions are briefly discussed in relation to climatic conditions.Doostmohammadi Moslem, Bordbar Firouzeh, Mirtadzadini Mansour. Floristic composition correlates with bioclimatic condition. Occurrence of several Mediterranean elements in southeast of Iran. In: Ecologia mediterranea, tome 46 n°2, 2020. pp. 27-34

A new species of Veronica (Plantaginaceae) from Western Iran

A new species, Veronica kurdistanica (Plantaginaceae), is described and illustrated. It grows on limestone cliffs in mountainous alpine areas of western Iran (Kurdistan province). The new species belongs to the species group of V. kurdica and is considered to be closely related to V. daranica, V. khorassanica and V. kurdica, with which the new species is compared. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of nrDNA (ITS) region confirms this relationship. Veronica kurdistanica is distinguished from the mentioned species by its glandular indumentum, length and shape of leaves and bracts, number of flowers per raceme, length and width of calyx and corolla, and size of capsules and seeds

Silene

Key to S. penduliflora F.Jafari, Keshavarzi & Doostm. sp. nov., S. thyrsiantha F.Jafari, Mirtadz. & Keshavarzi sp. nov. and close relatives 1. Stems non-viscid; synflorescences densely thyrsoid, pedicel 4 mm; calyx usually> 8 mm...................... 2 2. Calyx 7‒11 mm; pedicel 5‒9 mm; capsule 6.5‒9× 2.5‒5.5 mm....................................................... 3 – Calyx 8‒10 mm; pedicel (4.5‒) 5‒16 mm; capsule 4‒6 × 3‒4 mm.................................................... 4 3. Basal leaves 5‒32 × 2‒4.5 mm; calyx 7‒9 mm; petal limb 2‒3 mm; capsule 6.5‒7 × 2.5‒3 mm.................................................................................................... S. ghahremaninejadii Hoseini & Assadi – Basal leaves 11‒60× 2.5‒4 mm; calyx 9‒11 mm; petal limb 5‒6 mm; capsule 7.5‒9× 4‒5.5 mm........................................................................ S. penduliflora F.Jafari, Keshavarzi & Doostm. sp. nov. 4. Stem non-thick; pedicel (4.5‒) 5‒16 mm; petal limb ca 5 mm; claw glabrous; seeds 0.8 × 0.6–0.7 mm; seed testa cell margins V-shaped; distribution: Isfahan Province............................................................................................................................. S. thyrsiantha F.Jafari, Mirtadz. & Keshavarzi sp. nov. – Stem thick; pedicel 6‒12 mm; petal limb 5‒5.5 mm; claw ciliate; seeds 1.1 × 0.8 mm; seed testa cell margins U-shaped; distribution: Semnan Province....................................... S. shahrudensis Rech.f.Published as part of Jafari, Farzaneh, Keshavarzi, Maryam, Doostmohammadi, Moslem & Mirtadzadini, Mansour, 2023, Two new chasmophytic species of Silene (Caryophyllaceae, sect. Siphonomorpha) from Iran, pp. 42-61 in European Journal of Taxonomy 860 on page 47, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2023.860.2049, http://zenodo.org/record/767439

Is Pteropyrum a pathway to C4 evolution in Polygonaceae? An integrative approach to the taxonomy and anatomy of Pteropyrum (C3), an immediate relative of Calligonum (C4)

International audiencePteropyrum is a small genus of Polygonaceae with four species from the arid regions of Iran and adjacent countries. Pteropyrum spp. are not precisely delimitated and are difficult to identify because of their high plasticity in morphological characters. Pteropyrum (C 3) has a close affinity to Calligonum (C 4) and is therefore a suitable case for C 4 evolutionary studies. We investigated the morphology and micromorphology (including pollen morphology) of Pteropyrum and elucidated the phylogenetic relationships with Atraphaxis and Calligonum using nuclear ITS sequences. Characteristics of the photosynthetic tissues such as volume and number of layers of primary carbon assimilation tissues (PCA) and photosynthetic carbon reduction tissue (PCR) were studied. In addition, the leaf and cotyledon anatomical characters of Pteropyrum (C 3), Atraphaxis (C 3) and Calligonum (C 4), and their δ 13 C values were compared to look for evolutionary changes in assimilating organs. The molecular phylogenetic tree identifies two strongly supported clades in Pteropyrum and its close relationship with Calligonum, confirming previous studies. Some morphologically similar species belong to different clades, which is probably due to convergent evolution and homoplasy. Leaf anatomical studies show that Atraphaxis has a multilayered mesophyll tissue, whereas Calligonum has one-layered mesophyll cells. The volume and layer number of mesophyll tissue cells decreases, whereas water storage tissue area significantly increases from Atraphaxis to Pteropyrum and Calligonum. This phenomenon confirms previous studies in other lineages with C 4 salsoloid anatomy that have evolved through increasing of water storage tissue and succulence of assimilating organs. In the taxonomic part of the paper, a key to identification of accepted taxa of Pteropyrum, description of species and distribution maps are presented based on numerous herbarium specimens and our own rich collections from the field. Four new species are described based on a combination of morphology of seedlings and mature plants, pollen morphology and molecular data. A subspecific classification is suggested to show morpho-geographical variation of Pteropyrum aucheri s.l

Two new chasmophytic species of Silene (Caryophyllaceae, sect. Siphonomorpha) from Iran

Based on morphological and molecular evidence, two new species of Silene are recognized and described here, S. penduliflora F.Jafari, Keshavarzi & Doostm. sp. nov. and S. thyrsiantha F.Jafari, Mirtadz. & Keshavarzi sp. nov. The newly discovered species are distributed in the central and southeastern parts of Iran, growing in rocky habitats. Relationships among these species and their close relatives are demonstrated using nrDNA ITS and cpDNA rps16 phylogenies. Silene ghahremaninejadii, S. parrowiana, and S. shahrudensis form a clade with these new species. A key to S. penduliflora and S. thyrsiantha and their close relatives is provided

Phylogeny and Historical Biogeography of Veronica Subgenus Pentasepalae (Plantaginaceae): Evidence for Its Origin and Subsequent Dispersal

Veronica subgenus Pentasepalae is the largest subgenus of Veronica in the Northern Hemisphere with approximately 80 species mainly from Southwest Asia. In order to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among the members of V. subgenus Pentasepalae and to test the “out of the Iranian plateau” hypothesis, we applied thorough taxonomic sampling, employing nuclear DNA (ITS) sequence data complimented with morphological studies and chromosome number counts. Several high or moderately supported clades are reconstructed, but the backbone of the phylogenetic tree is generally unresolved, and many Southwest Asian species are scattered along a large polytomy. It is proposed that rapid diversification of the Irano-Turanian species in allopatric glacial refugia and a relatively high rate of extinction during interglacial periods resulted in such phylogenetic topology. The highly variable Asian V. orientalis–V. multifida complex formed a highly polyphyletic assemblage, emphasizing the idea of cryptic speciation within this group. The phylogenetic results allow the re-assignment of two species into this subgenus. In addition, V. bombycina subsp. bolkardaghensis, V. macrostachya subsp. schizostegia and V. fuhsii var. linearis are raised to species rank and the new name V. parsana is proposed for the latter. Molecular dating and ancestral area reconstructions indicate a divergence age of about 9 million years ago and a place of origin on the Iranian Plateau. Migration to the Western Mediterranean region has likely taken place through a North African route during early quaternary glacial times. This study supports the assumption of the Irano-Turanian region as a source of taxa for neighboring regions, particularly in the alpine flora

Hotspots within a global biodiversity hotspot - areas of endemism are associated with high mountain ranges

Conservation biology aims at identifying areas of rich biodiversity. Currently recognized global biodiversity hotspots are spatially too coarse for conservation management and identification of hotspots at a finer scale is needed. This might be achieved by identification of areas of endemism. Here, we identify areas of endemism in Iran, a major component of the Irano-Anatolian biodiversity hotspot, and address their ecological correlates. Using the extremely diverse sunflower family (Asteraceae) as our model system, five consensus areas of endemism were identified using the approach of endemicity analysis. Both endemic richness and degree of endemicity were positively related to topographic complexity and elevational range. The proportion of endemic taxa at a certain elevation (percent endemism) was not congruent with the proportion of total surface area at this elevation, but was higher in mountain ranges. While the distribution of endemic richness (i.e., number of endemic taxa) along an elevational gradient was hump-shaped peaking at mid-elevations, the percentage of endemism gradually increased with elevation. Patterns of endemic richness as well as areas of endemism identify mountain ranges as main centres of endemism, which is likely due to high environmental heterogeneity and strong geographic isolation among and within mountain ranges. The herein identified areas can form the basis for defining areas with conservation priority in this global biodiversity hotspot

Appendix 1. Full list of species

Table A1. List of plant species from upper zones of Genu and Homag mountains categorized based on their phytogeographical patterns and Table A2. List of plant species from Hormoz Island. Arranged according to their phytogeographical patterns