Relationships within Apiaceae subfamilies Saniculoideae and Apioideae based on phylogenetic analyses of cpDNA rps16 intron sequences

CALVIÑO, C. I., DOWNIE, S. R., TILNEY, P. M., AND VAN WYK, B.E.

Viena, Austria

Simposio; V Apiales Symposium; 2005

The family Apiaceae, as traditionally circumscribed, comprises three subfamilies, with the largest,Apioideae, being the focus of much systematic attention. In this study, we expand results of a previous phylogenetic analysis of chloroplast rps16 intron sequences by incorporating additional representation of “core Apiaceae” (Apioideae, Saniculoideae, and Azorelloideae) with several  woody or herbaceous African umbels, many of which have been postulated to be links between subfamilies Apioideae and Saniculoideae or to be important lineages in the early evolution of the family. The resulting matrix was analyzed using maximum parsimony and Bayesian analyses, and ancestral biogeographic distributions of the deeper splits within Apioideae and Saniculoideae were analyzed using DIVA. Among Apioideae, two additional major lineages are inferred (Annesorhiza clade; Lichtensteinia); these clades are allied closely with tribe Heteromorpheae. Heteromorpheae is expanded to include Pseudocarum. Saniculoideae are maintained as sister to Steganotaenia plus Polemanniopsis. All genera in Saniculoideae are monophyletic except Hacquetia. Concurrent studies of ITS and other cpDNA regions reveal similar relationships. Core Apiaceae is also expanded to include a fourth major clade (Hermas). A southern African origin of subfamilies Apioideae and Saniculoideae is postulated, and the placement of herbaceous members at the base of Apioideae suggests, surprisingly, that its ancestor was herbaceous, not woody.