Anatomical characteristics of two Ornithogalum L. (Hyacinthaceae) taxa from Serbia and Hungary and their taxonomic implication

Abstract

Anatomical characters of two morphologically similar Ornithogalum taxa, O. umbellatum and O. divergens, were investigated. An analysis of leaf and scapus cross-sections was performed on plants from ten populations from Serbia and Hungary, using light microscopy. The aim of this research was to give data about the qualitative and quantitative anatomical characteristics of these taxa, in order to evaluate their taxonomic significance and single out distinctive anatomical features, as well as to contribute to the knowledge of the genus Ornithogalum in the studied region. On the basis of the variability of anatomical characters, similar populations formed two clusters, joining the plants previously determined as O. divergens and O. umbellatum. The two taxa significantly differed for most of the quantitative leaf and scapus characters. Since only quantitative differences were recorded in this research, anatomical characters could not be solely used to separate these two taxa. However, the results of anatomical investigations are consistent with the results of previous morphological and genetic analyses; therefore anatomical parameters could be useful as additional taxonomic characters.