The shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora.

Distyly is a floral polymorphism that promotes cross-pollination through precise pollination. Psychotria is a mostly tropical genus of distylous Rubiaceae. Although widely studied in Brazil, some regions/species are still poorly explored, which hinders the understanding of distyly system along a greater geographical range. Here, we studied a subtropical population of Psychotria brachyceras in southern Brazil. For this, we characterized morphs occurrence, reciprocity of sexual structures, mating and incompatibility systems. In addition, we compared the reciprocity values from other species of the genus based on values gathered from literature to understand how the population behaves. The population showed equal proportions of thrum (short stigma/high anthers) and pin (high stigma/short anthers) morphs. Reciprocity was higher than the average for the genus and inaccuracy values between sexual organs were evenly distributed between the organ types, indicating a trend to typical distyly. Higher fruit set rates in intermorph and open pollination treatments and pollen tube growth observations confirmed that the population has a functional heteromorphic incompatibility system. Psychotria brachyceras showed no signs of distinct traits to typical distylous populations, which seems to ensure reproductive success and distyly maintenance.

The evolution of self-incompatibility seems to be responsible for a great part of the evolutionary success of flowering plants by preventing self-fertilization and, hence, the effects of inbreeding. The recognition of incompatibility mechanisms allows us to explore their emergency and functionality and is particularly interesting in hermaphrodite plants due to the sexual conflict they experience. Here, we investigated some pre-and post-pollination barriers for self-reproduction in Habranthus gracilifolius Herb. In a natural population, we performed hand pollinations to check mating and incompatibility systems, measured the distance between anthers and stigma within flowers, and observed flower visitors. Our results evidence that this species is self-incompatible and reproduces via outcrossing (90% of crossed flowers set fruits). Selfpollen grains germinate on the stigma surface and are stopped at the beginning of the style, typical of gametophytic selfincompatibility. The species presents approach herkogamy-stigma is positioned in average 2.78 mm above stamens, which may reduce pollen self-interference. It is visited by a variety of insects, many acting as thieves. Our indirect measures of pollinator performance suggest that flower visitation frequency alone is not enough to evaluate visitors' effects on fruit set. Herkogamy and gametophytic self-incompatibility prevent self-pollination and self-fertilization, respectively, and together with pollinators appropriated size and correct work of blossoms ensure the reproductive success of this species.

The genus Polygala is one of the seven Polygalaceae genera that occur in the Brazilian flora, covering approximately 110 species. During the taxonomic review of Polygalaceae in Southern Brazil, difficulties were found when classifying species with very similar morphology, and morphological data alone could not clarify these interspecific relationships. In this context, inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) molecular markers were used in an attempt to characterize the genetic diversity and relationships among Polygala species. Nine Polygala species were analyzed using six selected ISSR primers that generated a total of 75 bands (100% polymorphic). The relationships were evaluated by dendrograms using the unweighted pair group method using arithmetic averages algorithm. The use of ISSR to solve the taxonomic problems was very useful for the Brazilian Polygala species. This is the first report of a molecular characterization of the Brazilian Polygala species to successfully group the different species. The ISSR results are in agreement with the morphological evidence of a new Polygala species from Southern Brazil.

Herbarium collections represent an important source of rare and foreigner species being an alternative for molecular studies. The present study tested a simple DNA extraction method from herbarium tissues of several ages, as well different PCR methods. The DNA degradation appears to be more related to the condition of exicates than the year in which it was dried.

RESUMO -O azevém é uma planta daninha de ciclo anual, encontrada em praticamente todas as lavouras de inverno, em pomares e vinhedos da região Sul do Brasil. A espécie é normalmente controlada pelo herbicida glyphosate, no entanto, o uso continuado desse produto selecionou biótipos resistentes. Diferenças na suscetibilidade do azevém a herbicidas têm sido atribuídas a características morfológicas, anatômicas e genéticas das plantas. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram realizar a caracterização morfoanatômica, adequar metodologia para a análise citológica de cromossomos e indicar corantes para testes de viabilidade polínica de biótipos de azevém suscetível e resistentes ao herbicida glyphosate. As sementes dos biótipos de azevém suspeitos de resistência provieram do município de São Valentin, RS (SVA 1 e SVA 4), e Passo Fundo, RS (PFU 5), e as do biótipo conhecidamente suscetível (SVA 2), de São Valentin. Os biótipos de azevém estudados que apresentam resistência ao herbicida glyphosate não podem ser diferenciados do biótipo suscetível através de aspectos morfológicos, não existindo diferenças anatômicas de folha e raiz que evidenciem possibilidade da absorção diferencial do herbicida glyphosate entre os biótipos de azevém. A metodologia para a análise citológica dos biótipos de azevém merece adequações para melhor nitidez dos cromossomos, podendo-se aumentar o tempo de hidrólise e de exposição ao agente antimitótico utilizado neste trabalho, bem como testar outros agentes. Todos os corantes apresentaram bom desempenho na determinação da viabilidade polínica frente aos biótipos avaliados, exceto o azul de tripan, que subestimou os resultados.Palavras-chave: anatomia, cromossomos, Lolium multiflorum, morfologia, Poaceae. ABSTRACT -Ryegrass is an annual weed found in all winter

Polygala is the largest genus in the family Polygalaceae, with about 110 species and 30 varieties. Polygala altomontana is a new species described from southern Brazil and is placed in the subgenus Polygala characterised by flowers with a crested keel. P. altomontana occurs in the high grasslands in Paraná and Santa Catarina states and has a prostate habit, leaves opposite, rarely alternate, fleshy and glandular, white flowers, persistent corolla and narrowly winged fruits with a persistent style and stigma. This species was recognised during a revision of the Polygalaceae for southern Brazil. A description, illustrations and observations on habitat and geographic distribution are presented.Resumo. O gênero Polygala é o mais rico dentro da família Polygalaceae, abrangendo cerca de 110 espécies e 30 variedades. Polygala altomontana é uma nova espécie, descrita para a região sul do Brasil, e está incluída no subgênero Polygala, caracterizado por apresentar flores com carena cristada. P. altomontana é encontrada nos campos de altitude dos estados do Paraná e Santa Catarina e apresenta um hábito prostrado, folhas opostas raramente alternas, carnosas, glandulosas, flores brancas, corola persistente, fruto estreitamente alado, estilete e estigma persistentes no fruto. Esta espécie foi reconhecida durante a revisão da família Polygalaceae na região sul do Brasil. São fornecidas descrições morfológicas, ilustração, observações sobre hábitats e distribuição geográfica.

Lüdtke, R.; Aguiar, A. C. A. A note about the occurrence of reduced petals in species of Polygala L. subgenus Hebeclada (Chodat) Blake (Polygalaceae) from southern Brazil. Biota Neotrop., vol 8, no. 1, Jan./Mar. 2008. Available from: Abstract: The number of petals in the flowers is a taxonomic character used in the circumscription of the subgenera of Polygala. Until now, the corolla of the species of subgenus Hebeclada was described having tree petals, one inferior and central called carina and two lateral adnated to the staminal sheath. Among the 12 subgenera of Polygala, the occurrence of trimerous corolla was only known in subgenera Polygala and Hebeclada. This paper presents the discovery of pentamerous corolla in species of Polygala subgenus Hebeclada, presenting photos and additional comments about this reduced petals unknown for the subgenus until this moment. Keywords: corolla, Polygala, subgenus Hebeclada, Polygalaceae, southern Brazil. Resumo: O número de pétalas é um dos caracteres taxonômicos utilizados na circunscrição dos subgêneros de Polygala. Até o momento, a corola das espécies do subgênero Hebeclada era descrita apresentando apenas três pétalas, uma inferior e central, denominada carena e duas laterais superiores aderidas à bainha estaminal. Dentre os 12 subgêneros de Polygala, a ocorrência de corola trímera era registrada apenas nos subgêneros Polygala e Hebeclada. O presente trabalho trata da ocorrência inédita de corola pentâmera em espécies de Polygala do subgênero Hebeclada, apresentando fotografias e comentários adicionais sobre estas pétalas reduzidas, não referidas para o subgênero até o momento.