EuphORBia: a global inventory of the spurges

Esser, Hans‐Joachim; Berry, Paul E.; Riina, Ricarda

doi:10.3767/000651909x474023

Cited by 17 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…With the creation of the Euphorbia Planetary Biodiversity Inventory project in 2006 (Esser & al., 2009;Riina & Berry, 2012a), we convened the leading experts on leafy spurges worldwide and worked together to assemble a broad taxonomic and geographic sampling of species in E. subg. Esula.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A worldwide molecular phylogeny and classification of the leafy spurges, Euphorbia subgenus Esula (Euphorbiaceae)

Riina

Peirson

Geltman

et al. 2013

TAXON

125

140

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The leafy spurges, Euphorbia subg. Esula, make up one of four main lineages in Euphorbia. The subgenus comprises about 480 species, most of which are annual or perennial herbs, but with a small number of dendroid shrubs and nearly leafless, pencil–stemmed succulents as well. The subgenus constitutes the primary northern temperate radiation in Euphorbia. While the subgenus is most diverse from central Asia to the Mediterranean region, members of the group also occur in Africa, in the Indo–Pacific region, and in the New World. We have assembled the largest worldwide sampling of the group to date (273 spp.), representing most of the taxonomic and geographic breadth of the subgenus. We performed phylogenetic analyses of sequence data from the nuclear ribosomal ITS and plastid ndhF regions. Our individual and combined analyses produced well–resolved phylogenies that confirm many of the previously recognized clades and also establish a number of novel groupings and placements of previously enigmatic species. Euphorbia subg. Esula has a clear Eurasian center of diversity, and we provide evidence for four independent arrivals to the New World and three separate colonizations of tropical and southern Africa. One of the latter groups further extends to Madagascar and New Zealand, and to more isolated islands such as Réunion and Samoa. Our results confirm that the dendroid shrub and stem–succulent growth forms are derived conditions in E. subg. Esula. Stem–succulents arose twice in the subgenus and dendroid shrubs three times. Based on the molecular phylogeny, we propose a new classification for E. subg. Esula that recognizes 21 sections (four of them newly described and two elevated from subsectional rank), and we place over 95% of the accepted species in the subgenus into this new classification.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A worldwide molecular phylogeny and classification of the leafy spurges, Euphorbia subgenus Esula (Euphorbiaceae)

Riina

Peirson

Geltman

et al. 2013

TAXON

125

140

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“…As part of the Euphorbia Planetary Biodiversity Inventory project supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation (Esser & al., 2009;Riina & Berry, 2013a), we assembled a broad taxonomic and geographic sampling of the species in E. subg. Athymalus.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A molecular phylogeny and classification of the largely succulent and mainly African Euphorbia subg. Athymalus (Euphorbiaceae)

Peirson

Bruyns

Riina

et al. 2013

TAXON

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Euphorbia subg. Athymalus consists of approximately 150 species and is one of the four main lineages that comprise the species–rich genus Euphorbia. Most species in the subgenus are stem succulents with greatly reduced leaves, but there are also leafy herbs, shrubs, trees and geophytes. The subgenus is restricted to arid regions of the Old World. Most species are found in sub–Saharan Africa, with one in Macaronesia and adjacent parts of western Africa, a few in the Arabian Peninsula (one of which extends into Iran) and one native to Madagascar. Twenty–three species are endemic to the northeastern Horn of Africa (SE Ethiopia, Socotra, Somalia), while 72 species are restricted to southern Africa (including Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland). Sixty of those are endemic to South Africa alone, where they are particularly associated with the semi–arid west and south of the country in the Greater Cape Floristic Region and the Nama Karoo Region. We sampled 88 species and analyzed data from the nuclear ribosomal ITS and plastid ndhF regions. Analyses of the separate and combined datasets produced phylogenies that confirm the monophyly of E. subg. Athymalus and the placement of E. antso from Madagascar as sister to the rest of the subgenus. Our analyses also show that the subgenus consists of a grade of early–diverging lineages that are relatively poor in species and that the major radiation of succulent species in southern Africa forms a highly supported clade (E. sect. Anthacanthae). Species–level relationships within this southern African clade, however, remain largely unresolved. Our phylogenetic hypotheses allow us to propose a new classification for E. subg. Athymalus where seven sections are recognized, two of which are newly described. The large southern African E. sect. Anthacanthae is further divided into five subsections, and four series are recognized in E. subsect. Florispinae.

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“…The last complete taxonomic monograph of Euphorbia was published by Boissier (1862). Currently the EuphORBia project aims at a virtual digital up-to-date monograph of the genus (Esser et al, 2009). Several authors discussed and erected infrageneric classification of this huge genus, in particular Bentham (1880), Pax and Hoffmann (1931), Wheeler (1943).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seed and gland morphology in Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae) with focus on their systematic and phylogenetic importance, a case study in Iranian highlands

Salmaki

Zarré

Esser³

et al. 2011

Flora - Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants

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EuphORBia: a global inventory of the spurges

Abstract: The EuphORBia project, a global inventory of the giant genus Euphorbia, is introduced.

Cited by 17 publications

References 3 publications

A worldwide molecular phylogeny and classification of the leafy spurges, Euphorbia subgenus Esula (Euphorbiaceae)

A worldwide molecular phylogeny and classification of the leafy spurges, Euphorbia subgenus Esula (Euphorbiaceae)

A molecular phylogeny and classification of the largely succulent and mainly African Euphorbia subg. Athymalus (Euphorbiaceae)

Seed and gland morphology in Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae) with focus on their systematic and phylogenetic importance, a case study in Iranian highlands

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