No abstract

The Boraginales are now universally accepted as monophyletic and firmly placed in Lamiidae. However, a consensus about familial classification has remained elusive, with some advocating recognition of a single, widely variable family, and others proposing recognition of several distinct families. A consensus classification is proposed here, based on recent molecular phylogenetic studies, morphological characters, and taking nomenclatural stability into consideration. We suggest the recognition of eleven, morphologically well-defined and clearly monophyletic families, namely the Boraginaceae s.str., Codonaceae, Coldeniaceae fam. nov., Cordiaceae, Ehretiaceae, Heliotropiaceae, Hoplestigmataceae, Hydrophyllaceae, Lennoaceae, Namaceae, and Wellstediaceae. Descriptions, synonomy, a taxonomic key, and a list of genera for these eleven families are provided, including the new family Coldeniaceae (monogeneric) and Namaceae (segregated from Hydrophyllaceae and comprising Nama, Eriodictyon, Turricula, and Wigandia), the latter necessitating a revised circumscription of a more morphologically coherent Hydrophyllaceae. Keywords angiosperms; Boraginaceae; Boraginales; classification; family; plant taxonomy Boraginales Working Group • Families of Boraginales 503Version of Record TAXON 65 (3) • June 2016: 502-522 Boraginaceae in this traditional sense (Candolle, 1845; Bentham & Hooker, 1876;Gürke, 1893;Engler, 1898;Pilger & Krause, 1915) were subdivided into five subfamilies, namely Boraginoideae, Cordioideae, Ehretioideae, Heliotropioideae and Wellstedioideae. In pre-molecular times most scientists accepted this circumscription of Boraginaceae (e.g., Chadefaud & Emberger, 1960;Melchior, 1964b;Takhtajan, 1980Takhtajan, , 1997 Cronquist, 1981 Cronquist, , 1988Thorne, 1992), although some authors recognized one or the other subfamily at the family level. For example, Svensson (1925) andDi Fulvio (1978) removed Cordioideae, Heliotropioideae and Ehretioideae to Heliotropi aceae based on embryological studies, while Merxmüller (1960), Dahlgren (1980), and Takhtajan (1987) treated Wellstedioideae at the family level as Wellstediaceae. Conversely, Hoplestigmataceae, Hydrophyllaceae, and Lennoaceae were generally accepted as distinct families. However, the close relationships of these taxa to traditional Boraginaceae has been widely acknowledged by several authors (e.g., Jussieu, 1789; Baillon, 1891;Peter, 1893;Svensson, 1925; Chadefaud & Emberger, 1960; Melchior, 1964a, c;Takhtajan, 1980; Cronquist, 1981 Cronquist, , 1988. For example, Baillon (1891) defined the Boraginaceae as comprising nine series, which included both Boraginaceae and Hydrophyllaceae in their traditional circumscriptions. Chadefaud & Emberger (1960) considered Boraginaceae, Hoplestigmataceae, Hydrophyllaceae, and Lennoaceae to form a natural group within the order Tubiflorales. Takhtajan (1980) included these same families in the suborder Boraginineae.On the other hand, three groups historically associated to Boraginaceae have been clearly sho...

Chemical profiles of ovular secretions of ambophilous gymnosperms show a clear signal of pollinator-driven selection, including higher levels of carbohydrates than anemophilous taxa, lower levels of amino acids, and the presence of specific amino acids, such as β-alanine, that are known to influence insect feeding behaviour and physiology.

BackgroundStudies on the diversity of yeasts in floral nectar were first carried out in the late 19th century. A narrow group of fermenting, osmophilous ascomycetes were regarded as exclusive specialists able to populate this unique and species poor environment. More recently, it became apparent that microorganisms might play an important role in the process of plant pollination. Despite the importance of these nectar dwelling yeasts, knowledge of the factors that drive their diversity and species composition is scarce.ResultsIn this study, we linked the frequencies of yeast species in floral nectars from various host plants on the Canary Islands to nectar traits and flower visitors. We estimated the structuring impact of pollination syndromes (nectar volume, sugar concentration and sugar composition) on yeast diversity.The observed total yeast diversity was consistent with former studies, however, the present survey yielded additional basidiomycetous yeasts in unexpectedly high numbers. Our results show these basidiomycetes are significantly associated with ornithophilous flowers. Specialized ascomycetes inhabit sucrose-dominant nectars, but are surprisingly rare in nectar dominated by monosaccharides.ConclusionsThere are two conclusions from this study: (i) a shift of floral visitors towards ornithophily alters the likelihood of yeast inoculation in flowers, and (ii) low concentrated hexose-dominant nectar promotes colonization of flowers by basidiomycetes. In the studied floral system, basidiomycete yeasts are acknowledged as regular members of nectar. This challenges the current understanding that nectar is an ecological niche solely occupied by ascomycetous yeasts.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12898-015-0036-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Many plant-derived chemicals may have an impact on the functioning of the animal brain. The mechanisms by which the psychoactive components of these various products have their effects have been widely described, but the question of why they have these effects has been almost totally ignored. Recent evidence suggests that plants may produce chemicals to manipulate their partner ants and to make reciprocation more beneficial. In the present review we propose that these plant-derived chemicals could have evolved in plants to attract and manipulate ant behaviour; this would place the plant–animal interaction in a different ecological context and open new ecological and neurobiological perspectives for drug seeking and use.