Cryptic speciation in liverworts – a case study in the Aneura pinguis complex

Abstract

Bryophytes are amongst the most ancestral terrestrial plants and often have large distribution ranges across continents. Recent biochemical and molecular studies have suggested that many worldwide morphological species of bryophyte may represent genetically divergent and reproductively isolated cryptic species. We tested the cryptic species hypothesis in the thalloid liverwort Aneura pinguis complex. We applied analyses of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) sequence variation and polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP) methods to discriminate between specimens of A. pinguis derived from various habitats in five distant geographical regions in Poland. Of the 19 specimens sequence characterized for the cpDNA tRNALeu region, seven haplotypes were identified divided into three nonmonophyletic clusters. The application of developed PCR‐RFLP markers confirmed the existence of three tRNALeu types of A. pinguis (A–C) within the specimens derived from 21 populations. Sympatric populations of different tRNALeu types were found in lowland and mountain regions. No clear correlation between stand type and the presence of two tRNALeu types (A, B) was observed, as both were growing on soil, humus, and rocks. The tRNALeu type C was found only on humus and its distribution was restricted to low‐lying northern populations. The above results indicate that the A. pinguis complex is highly differentiated at the molecular level and may represent three cryptic species. © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2007, 155, 273–282.

Conservative ecological and evolutionary patterns in liverwort–fungal symbioses

“…Recent studies (Wachowiak et al 2006;Ba˛czkiewicz et al 2008;Wickett & Goffinet 2008;L. Forrest & D. Long 2009, unpublished data) can provide an explanation for this apparent disparity.…”

Macroecological patterns of genetic structure and diversity in the aquatic mossPlatyhypnidium riparioides

“…The idea that a widespread aquatic moss such as P. riparioides is able to locally adapt to its environment suggests that bryophytes are, like angiosperms, able to develop local 'races' in response to environmental variation. If this hypothesis is confirmed by additional experimental work, it may have important consequences for the understanding of how environmental variation affects speciation in bryophytes, and may, in particular, help us to understand the origin of the increasing numbers of 'cryptic' bryophyte species that have been reported recently (Hedenäs & Eldenäs, 2007;Wachowiak et al, 2007;Hedenäs, 2008).…”

A case study of DNA barcoding in Chinese Grimmiaceae and a moss recorded in China for the first time

“…Many bryophytes with intercontinental distributions exhibit morphological uniformity, and thus are difficult to resolve morphologically into natural groups. Hence, various molecular markers (e.g., isozymes, RFLP and DNA sequences) have been used to explore cryptic speciation (Shaw, 2001;Fernandez & al., 2006;Wachowiak & al., 2007;Heinrichs & al., 2009). DNA barcoding could complement conventional taxonomic identification, avoiding species misidentification caused by phenotypic plasticity among studied traits, and could lead to the discovery of cryptic species.…”