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Abstract Detail



Floristics & Taxonomy

McDonnell, Angela [1], Wetreich, Heather [2], Cantley, Jason [3], Jobson, Peter [4], Martine, Christopher [5].

Solanum plastisexum, an enigmatic new bush tomato from the Australian Monsoon Tropics exhibiting breeding system fluidity.

A bush tomato that has evaded classification by solanologists for decades has been identified and is described as a new species belonging to the Australian “Solanum dioicum group” of the Ord Victoria Plain biogeographic region in the monsoon tropics of the Northern Territory. While now recognized as an andromonoecious species, S. plastisexum has been found exhibiting multiple reproductive phenotypes: with solitary perfect flowers, a few staminate flowers, or with cymes composed of a basal hermaphrodite and an extended rachis of several to many distal staminate flowers. When in fruit, the species also may drop the distal rachis. A member of Solanum subgenus Leptostemonum, Solanum plastisexum Martine & McDonnell sp. nov. is allied to the S. eburneum Symon species group. Morphometric analyses presented here reveal that S. plastisexum differs statistically from all of its closest relatives including S. eburneum, S. diversiflorum F. Meull., S. jobsonii Martine, J. Cantley, & L.M. Lacey, S. succosum A.R. Bean & Albr., and S. watneyi Martine & Frawley in both reproductive and vegetative characters. This new species is apparently labile in its reproductive expression, lending to its epithet; and this plant is a model for the sort of sexual fluidity that is present across Kingdom Plantae -- and, indeed, across much of life on Earth.


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1 - Bucknell University, Biology, 1 Dent Drive, Lewisburg, PA, 17837, United States
2 - Bucknell University, Department of Biology , 1 Dent Drive, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, 17837, United States
3 - San Francisco State University, Biology, 1600 Holloway Ave, SF State University Biology Department, Hensill Ha, San Francisco, CA, 94132, United States
4 - Northern Territory Herbarium, Alice Springs, NT, Australia
5 - Bucknell University, Biological Sciences, 203 Biology Building, Lewisburg, PA, 17837, United States

Keywords:
andromonoecy
Solanaceae
new species
Australia
bush tomato
breeding systems
reproductive biology
Undergraduate
Solanum
taxonomy .

Presentation Type: Poster
Session: P, Floristics and Taxonomy
Location: Arizona Ballroom/Starr Pass
Date: Monday, July 29th, 2019
Time: 5:30 PM This poster will be presented at 5:30 pm. The Poster Session runs from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. Posters with odd poster numbers are presented at 5:30 pm, and posters with even poster numbers are presented at 6:15 pm.
Number: PFT003
Abstract ID:182
Candidate for Awards:None


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