Adil GÜNER, Vehbi ESER - optima

Posters
130
MULTIPLE ORIGINS OF TETRAPLOID VERONICA CHAMAEDRYS
ON THE BALKAN PENINSULA
Katharina BARDY 1 , Peter SCHÖNSWETTER 1 , Manfred A. FISCHER 1 & Dirk C.
ALBACH 2
1 Faculty Centre of Biodiversity, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
katharina.bardy@univie.ac.at;peter.schoenswetter@univie.ac.at; Manfred.a.fischer@univie.ac.at
2 Institute of Biology and Environmental Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky-University, Oldenburg, Germany
dirk.albach@uni-oldenburg.de
Veronica chamaedrys (Plantaginaceae) is a widespread tetraploid species in Europe occurring
mainly in open forests and forest margins from sea-level to the subalpine zone. Diploid
individuals are mainly known from southeastern Europe, where they fall into morphologically
distinct species or subspecies (V. chamaedryoides, V. vindobonensis, V. chamaedrys subsp.
micans, V. orbelica, V. krumovii). The distribution of these diploid species suggests survival
in Pleistocene forest refugia.
Using genome size estimations, AFLP fingerprints, cpDNA markers as well as morphological
characters, taxonomical and phylogeographical questions were addressed. The analyses
support three geographically separated diploid taxa and one additional diploid, possibly
hybridogenic taxon, all of which correspond to previously recognized morphologically
defined diploid species. Tetraploids originated multiple times within the diploid groups
apparently almost exclusively as autotetraploids. Despite separate origins from
morphologically distinct diploids, tetraploids are morphologically not easily distinguishable.
Diploid cytotypes dominate in the south of the distribution area of Veronica chamaedrys s.l.,
while tetraploids are increasingly important towards the North.
Keywords: AFLP, cpDNA, morphometrics, polyploidy, Veronica chamaedrys
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