Annals of Botany 33: 591-613, 1969
© 1969 Annals of Botany Company
RESEARCH-ARTICLE |
Serolo{dot}gical Relationships and Taxonomy in Certain Tribes of the Gramineae
Department of Botany, University of Edinburgh
A range of grass species, representing a number of genera and tribes, has been analysed serologically using antisera to Bromus arvensis L., Bromus ciliatus L., Triticum monococcum L., and Festuca pratensis Huds. The results are reviewed in connection with data from other fields in order to appraise the degrees of similarity and relationship between the different genera and tribes.
Members of the tribes Paniceae, Andropogoneae, Oryzeae, Eragrosteae, Chlorideae, and Stipeae are shown to be very distant, in serological terms, from the test species, all of which are in the sub-family Festucoideae. The Triticeae are shown to be serologically rather uniform, and to be not very closely related to the Festuceae, although fairly similar to Bromus. Festuceae also display affinity with Bromus which therefore seems to be a linking group between these two tribes. Evidence from other sources is adduced in support of this conclusion. Bromus is shown to be serologically unrelated to Brachypodium, often placed in the same tribe, Brachypodieae. Brachypodium and Bromus are considered to comprise two monotypic tribes. Considerable heterogeneity in the Festuceae is indicated by the serological results, and the genus Melica, which fails to react with any antiserum, is placed in a separate tribe Meliceae. The Aveneae include species which react fairly strongly to the test antisera and some which do not. This tribe, together with the Agrosteae and Phalaris minor, exhibits greatest reactivity with the Festuca pratensis antiserum, and is thought therefore to have a greater affinity with the Festuceae than the Triticeae or Bromus. There are no serological indications of discontinuity between the more weakly reacting Aveneae and Agrosteae, and this is considered compatible with the idea that the latter tribe is an unnatural assemblage of several lines of evolving avenoid types. A scheme of affinities suggested by the evidence reviewed is presented.
Nardus stricta shows only a very low serological correspondence with the test species, and so its isolated position with respect to these is confirmed.