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Abstract
The relationships among western Balkan and some amphi-Adriatic endemic campanulas were studied using RFLP analysis of the 1.8-kb trnT – trnF chloroplast DNA region. The results were compared to those of a comparative floral morphometry study performed earlier on a similar sample. Maximum parsimony and distance methods produced very similar results to those of the floral morphometry, both of which point to a clear separation of the taxa into three main clades. The first isophyllous, or Garganicae series, clade comprised Campanula poscharskyana, C. portenschlagiana, C. garganica, C. reatina and two C. fenestrellata-subspecies. The second “isophylloid” clade consisted of C. pyramidalis agg., C. waldsteiniana agg. and C. carpatica. The third, heterophyllous clade was very uniform, comprising undistinguishable taxa of the C. rotundifolia complex and alpine endemic C. cochleariifolia. Interestingly the Ligurian stenoendemic C. isophylla was clearly separated from the members of the ser. Garganicae, C. reatina was the most distant taxon in the Garganicae clade, the controversial species Asyneuma pichleri was nested inside the Campanula core, while Campanula carpatica was closer to the “isophylloids” than to the sect. Rapunculus Boiss. In order to resolve the taxonomic uncertainty among the closely related heterophyllous taxa more refined molecular methods, e.g. AFLP or microsatellites, should be applied.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Managements of the Risnjak National Park, North Velebit National Park, Paklenica National Park, Učka Nature Park, Biokovo Nature Park (Croatia) and Blidinje Nature Park (Bosnia and Herzegovina) for their help in collecting material (permissions of the Croatian Ministry of Environmental Protection and Nature Conservation: No 531-06/1DS-01-2/2 and 531-06/1DS-02-2/3). The assistance of Prof. F. Lucchese (Rome, Italy), Dr. N. Jogan (Ljubljana, Slovenia), Prof. Z. Šatović (Zagreb, Croatia) and Mr. D. Mihelj (Zagreb, Croatia) in collecting the plant material and sharing unpublished information is gratefully acknowledged. Material cultivated in the Botanical Garden of the Faculty of Science, Zagreb (Croatia) can be attained via Delectus Seminum publications. This study was supported by the Scientific Research Council of the Republic of Croatia, within the framework of Project No. 119-1191193-1227 and Project No. 119-1191193-1232.
