YIP, KWOK LEUNG1* and BRENT D. MISHLER2. 1University Herbarium (UC), 1001 VLSB, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-2465; 2University & Jepson Herbaria and Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-2465. - A reappraisal of the resorption pores of hyalocysts in the Calymperaceae and their phylogenetic significance.
Despite difficulties in taxonomic circumscription and phylogenetic
placement, the Calymperaceae, a diverse and ecologically important
family of tropical mosses, exhibits an array of peculiar features. The
‘leucobryoid’ leaf architecture, found in some members of the family,
features distinctive layers of chlorocysts and hyalocysts. Edwards
(1980, J. Bryol. 11:49-93) previously studied layers of the resorption
pores in the hyalocysts in the more "normal" leaves of
Calymperes. As part of ongoing phylogenetic and monographic
research in the Calymperaceae, we observed microscopically the
variation of resorption pores among exemplar members of the family and
its putative relatives, and evaluated their potential as taxonomic
characters. Internal pores of hyalocysts are distributed on the
lateral and transverse walls whereas pores on the adaxial and abaxial
walls (when present) are open to the exterior. This investigation
supports recent phylogenetic analyses indicating an expanded concept
of the Calymperaceae and helps to resolve relationships within the
family. Acknowledgment: We are grateful to acknowledge the funding
provided by the National Science Foundation (PEET: Partnerships for
Enhancing Expertise in Taxonomy; DEB-9712347).
Key words: anatomy, mosses, phylogenetics, phylogeny, systematics