Long-distance relationships in Polemoniaceae: a tale of two species.

JOHNSON, L.; POZNER, R.

Chicago, Illinois

Congreso; Plant Biology & Botany 2007 Conference; 2007

Botanical Society of America

The sister genera Collomia and Navarretia are largely restricted to Western North America, with approximately 34 of 35 species of Navarretia and 14 of 15 species of Collomia native to this region. The earliest named entities in both genera, however, are single species native to Western South America that occur in comparable habitats to their North American counterparts along either side of the Andes. Several other genera of Polemoniaceae, for instance Ipomopsis, Leptosiphon, and Gilia, show similar biogeographic patterns that support a North American origin of the temperate genera of Polemoniaceae as well as multiple dispersal events to South America usually associated with the formation of novel species. This general pattern has been discussed previously; here, we move beyond this general pattern to explore specifically the phylogenetic relationships of Collomia biflora, Navarretia involucrata, and their North American counterparts. Character evolution, taxonomy, and the relative timing of dispersal are elaborated in light of both morphological and molecular data.