Minor differences with big consequences: Reproductive patterns in the genus Gagea (Liliaceae)

Gagea antakiensis, a new species from Southern Anatolia, Turkey and the new finding of Gagea lojaconoi (Liliaceae)

“…In the recent years, many researchers have contributed to taxonomy within the genus (Ali & Levichev 2007, Levichev 1999, 2006, Levichev & Ali 2006, Peruzzi 2003, 2008a, 2012b, 2008a, 2008b, 2009a, 2009b, Peruzzi & Bartolucci 2006, Peterson et al 2004, 2010, Schnittler et al 2013, Tison et al 2013, Zarrei et al 2007, 2010a, 2010b, 2010c. Currently, the genus Gagea includes 15 sections, mainly distinguished according to the morpho-anatomic and ontogenetic features of the basal and cauline leaves, peduncle, pedicels, tepals, and seeds (Peterson et al 2008, Peruzzi 2012a).…”

Studies of life history of Gagea graeca (Liliaceae) based on morphological and molecular methods

“…Although the age of the plants cannot be determined, the measurements allow to determine threshold (in terms of bulbil size) for the development of seeds and bulbils. For the species of the genus Gagea , the relation between sexual (seeds) and asexual (bulbils) reproduction seems to be a crucial adaptive trait (Schnittler et al 2013) and is determined by these thresholds (as the diameter of the replacement bulb where 50% of all plants develop the respective structure, Schnittler et al 2009) and the number of seeds and bulbils. Therefore, resource allocation into seeds and bulbils can be assumed to be under high selective pressure.…”

“…Using a ruler and/or a digital caliper (precision ± 0.02 mm) we measured the diameter of the replacement bulbs (including the thin tunic of the former parent bulb; see Schnittler et al 2013) and the diameter/length of the usually single basal bulbil and its short to extremely short stolon. In addition, we recorded number of flowers, shoot height above ground, and numbers of basal and stem leaves.…”

“…Compared with the size of the plant, flowers are showy, with white, elongated tepals with reddish veins, which are recurved at apex. This habit, resembling that of an annual plant, is unusual among the genus and points to prevailing reproduction via seeds, whereas most other species of the genus reproduce predominantly via bulbils (e.g., Levichev 1999, 2013; Schnittler et al 2013). However, in addition to the renewal bulb produced in the axil of the first leaf (obligatory for the genus, furthermore named parent bulb) plants with two leaves start to produce a first bulbil on a very short stolon (hypopodium according to Peruzzi et al 2008).…”

“…(Beisenova et al 2015). A quantitative morphology approach (Schnittler et al 2009, 2013; Beisenova et al 2015), including measurements on living plants of all ontogenetic stages, is used to quantify possible traits enabling G. graeca to persist in the only temporarily wet vegetation Mediterranean shrub land. In addition, amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), (Vos et al 1995) was employed to estimate the proportions of vegetative (leading to clones) and generative reproduction (producing new genotypes) in the species.…”