Plant Diversity ›› 2023, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (03): 284-301.DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2022.11.003

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Insights into cryptic speciation of quillworts in China

Yu-Feng Gua,b, Jiang-Ping Shub, Yi-Jun Luc, Hui Shend, Wen Shaod, Yan Zhoue, Qi-Meng Sunf, Jian-Bing Chenb, Bao-Dong Liua, Yue-Hong Yanb   

  1. a. Life Science and Technology College, Harbin Normal University, Key Laboratory of Plant Biology in Colleges of Heilongjiang Province, Harbin, 150025, China;
    b. Shenzhen Key Laboratory for Orchid Conservation and Utilization, and Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration for Orchid Conservation and Utilization, The National Orchid Conservation Center of China and the Orchid Conservation & Research Center of Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518114, China;
    c. Zhejiang University City College, Hangzhou, 310015, China;
    d. Shanghai Key Laboratory of Plant Functional Genomics and Resources, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, 201602, China;
    e. Jiande Xin'anjiang Forest Farm, Jiande, 311600, China;
    f. Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nanjing Botanical Garden Mem. Sun Yat-Sen), Nanjing, 210014, China
  • Received:2022-06-27 Revised:2022-10-24 Published:2023-07-06
  • Contact: Bao-Dong Liu,E-mail:99bd@163.com;Yue-Hong Yan,E-mail:yhyan@sibs.ac.cn
  • Supported by:
    We want to thank Jian-Ying Xiang (Southwest Forestry University), Jian-Yun Wang (Baoshan University), Xue-Liang Hou (Xiamen University), and Shi-Wei Yao (Zhongshan Botanical Garden) for providing Iso?tes materials. We would also like to thank Wen Shao (Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden) and Guo-Hua Zhao (Fairy Lake Botanical Garden) for their help scanning spores. We also would like to thank TopEdit (www.topeditsci.com) for linguistic assistance during manuscript preparation. This study was supported by the Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration for Orchid Conservation and Utilization (grant number OC202103), the Harbin Normal University Postgraduate Innovation Project (grant number HSDBSCX2021-01), the National Natural Science Foundation of China General Projects (grant number 32170216), and the Hangzhou Science and Technology Development Project (grant number 20201203B113).

Abstract: Cryptic species are commonly misidentified because of high morphological similarities to other species. One group of plants that may harbor large numbers of cryptic species is the quillworts (Isoëtes spp.), an ancient aquatic plant lineage. Although over 350 species of Isoëtes have been reported globally, only ten species have been recorded in China. The aim of this study is to better understand Isoëtes species diversity in China. For this purpose, we systematically explored the phylogeny and evolution of Isoëtes using complete chloroplast genome (plastome) data, spore morphology, chromosome number, genetic structure, and haplotypes of almost all Chinese Isoëtes populations. We identified three ploidy levels of Isoëtes in China-diploid (2n = 22), tetraploid (2n = 44), and hexaploid (2n = 66). We also found four megaspore and microspore ornamentation types in diploids, six in tetraploids, and three in hexaploids. Phylogenetic analyses confirmed that I. hypsophila as the ancestral group of the genus and revealed that Isoëtes diploids, tetraploids, and hexaploids do not form monophyletic clades. Most individual species possess a single genetic structure; however, several samples have conflicting positions on the phylogenetic tree based on SNPs and the tree based on plastome data. All 36 samples shared 22 haplotypes. Divergence time analysis showed that I. hypsophila diverged in the early Eocene (~48.05 Ma), and most other Isoëtes species diverged 3-20 Ma. Additionally, different species of Isoëtes were found to inhabit different water systems and environments along the Yangtze River. These findings provide new insights into the relationships among Isoëtes species in China, where highly similar morphologic populations may harbor many cryptic species.

Key words: Plastid genome, Isoëtaceae, Phylogeny, Evolutionary, Divergence time