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According to recent molecular phylogenetic data, the rare Australian endemic Maundia triglochinoides does not form a clade with taxa traditionally classified as members of Juncaginaceae. Therefore, views on the morphological evolution and taxonomy of Alismatales require re-assessment. As the morphology of Maundia is poorly known and some key features have been controversially described in the literature, the flowers, fruits, inflorescence axes and peduncles were studied using light and scanning electron microscopy. Inflorescences are bractless spikes with flowers arranged in trimerous whorls. Except in the inflorescence tip (where the flower groundplan is variable), flowers possess two tepals in transversal-abaxial positions, six stamens in two trimerous whorls and four carpels in median and transversal positions. Fruits are indehiscent. The shared possession of orthotropous ovules supports the molecular phylogenetic placement of Maundia as sister to a large clade including Potamogetonaceae and related families. Maundia and Aponogeton spp. share the same highly unusual floral groundplan, a homoplastic similarity that can be explained by spatial constraints in developing inflorescences. The nucellar coenocyte of Maundia appears to be unique among monocots. As Maundia exhibits a mosaic of features characteristic of other families of tepaloid core Alismatales, its segregation as a separate family is plausible.

and dynamic approach for monographing species-rich plant groups ndash building the global synthesis of the angiosperm order Caryophyllales, Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics (2015), http://dx. AbstractOne of the major goals of systematics is to provide a synthesis of knowledge on the diversity of a group of organisms, such as flowering plants. Biodiversity conservation and management call for rapid and accurate global assessments at the species level. At the same time the rapid development of evolutionary biology with a spectrum of approaches to test species relationships and species limits, has revolutionized and is still revolutionizing the science of plant systematics including taxonomy. We explore the relevant scientific and technological developments, but also organizational and logistic requirements, with the aim to suggest a conceptual framework for an integrated monographic synthesis of species diversity which can reach global coverage. Our exemplar group are the Caryophyllales, as an example of a globally distributedwhich are a plant lineage of worldwide distribution,, comprising approx. 5% of flowering plant species diversity. The current situation of organism classification is marked by a transition from pre-phylogenetic treatments to taxonomic treatments increasingly evaluated in an evolutionary context. Structured data (both molecular and morphological), linked to well-documented specimens will be important as fundamental entities of information that can be subjected to evolutionary analysis. As a result, taxon concepts are established as hypotheses which then can be used as basis for a classification system in a second step. The process of generating knowledge and subsequent classification of the recognized entities is step by step, including processes of reciprocal illumination. Global syntheses need to provide information and use a classification system that reflects the current state of knowledge. , they need to be dynamic Iin order to accommodate the constantly improved understanding of the organisms, eventually also resulting in the change of taxon concepts, the treatments need to be dynamic. The workflow for a global monographic synthesis as outlined here is supported by currently available biodiversity informatics tools such as the EDIT Platform for Cybertaxonomy. Based on these conceptual findings we outline the practical implementation steps towards a synthesis of the Caryophyllales, as an example of a globally distributed plant lineage, comprising approx. 5% of flowering plant species diversity. While the actualThe availability of electronic sources (names, protologues, type images, literature) greatly facilitates the access to information, but as our case shows, considerable efforts for data curation and research are still needed. Tthe implementation of a global monographic synthesis such as the Caryophyllales requires the involvement of the global scientific community.

The Triglochin bulbosa complex (Juncaginaceae) from the Mediterranean region and Africa is revised. One new species, Triglochin buchenaui Köcke, Mering & Kadereit, and two new subspecies, Triglochin bulbosa subsp. calcicola Mering, Köcke & Kadereit and Triglochin bulbosa subsp. quarcicola Mering, Köcke & Kadereit, are described from South Africa. The only two Mediterranean taxa in the complex (Triglochin barrelieri, T. laxiflora) are elevated to species rank. Altogether seven species and four subspecies are recognised: Triglochin barrelieri, T. buchenaui, T. bulbosa subsp. bulbosa, T. bulbosa subsp. calcicola, T. bulbosa subsp. quarcicola, T. bulbosa subsp. tenuifolia, T. compacta, T. elongata, T. laxiflora and T. milnei. An identification key, detailed descriptions and accounts of the ecology and distribution of the taxa are provided. An IUCN conservation status is proposed for each taxon.

The Caryophyllales Network strives to assemble an online dynamic synthesis of the order Caryophyl lales, uniting the current knowledge about the phylogeny of the order with up-to-date information on the individual taxa contained. Capturing taxonomic data and the decision processes involved in the definition and circumscription of the taxa requires highly complex specialized software. The Caryophyllales Network uses the EDIT Platform for Cybertaxonomy for that purpose. In the context of the online treatment of the family Nepenthaceae, we describe the steps taken to assemble the database, the interaction with other electronic sources, the links with the World Flora Online initiative, and the prospects for the maintenance and further development of the Nepenthaceae segment of the Caryophyllales database. Nepenthaceae constitute an example of a family with a relatively recent flora treatment (Flora Malesiana, published in 2001), which to a large extent covers its total range of distribution, but with further species subsequently described as new to science in mostly regional treatments, and with an analysis of relationships and species limits on the basis of evolutionary methods just emerging. A snapshot of the current state of the database is provided as an annotated checklist in PDF format in the Supplementary Material online, which includes 176 species and nine naturally occurring named hybrids and treats 435 species and infraspecific names.

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