02523nas a2200181 4500008004100000245005900041210005700100260001200157300001300169490000700182520201500189100001502204700001402219700002402233700002102257700001502278856004802293 2017 eng d00aFloral structure and ontogeny of Syndiclis (Lauraceae)0 aFloral structure and ontogeny of Syndiclis Lauraceae c10/2017 ae01863580 v123 a

Generic delimitation in the Beilschmiedia group of the Lauraceae remains ambiguous because flowering specimens of a few genera with confined distribution are poorly represented in herbaria, and a few floral characters important for taxonomy are still poorly known. Syndiclis is sporadically distributed in southwestern China, and is represented in the herbaria by only a few flowering specimens. We conducted field investigations to collect floral materials of four species and observed structures and ontogeny of the tiny flowers using both light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results show that the genus Syndiclis possesses flowers with huge variation in both merosity and organ number. Flowers of the genus are dimerous, trimerous, or tetramerous, or have mixed merosity with monomerous and dimerous, or dimerous and trimerous, or trimerous and tetramerous whorls. The number of staminodes ranges from two to eight, depending on floral merosity, and on how many stamens of the third androecial whorl are reduced to staminodes. The staminodes of the fourth androecial whorl are comparable to the staminodes in Potameia, but the staminodes of the third androecial whorl of Syndiclis are relatively larger than the staminodes in Potameia. They are erect or curved inwards, covering the ovary. The anthers are usually two-locular, but rarely one-locular or three-locular. Each stamen of the third androecial whorl bears two conspicuous and enlarged glands at the base. The lability of floral merosity and organ number of Syndiclis may have been caused by changes of pollination system and loss of special selective pressures that are present in most Lauraceous plants with fixed floral organ number. This study furthers our understanding of variation and evolution of a few important characters of the Beilschmiedia group and provides essential data for a revised generic classification of the group.

1 aZeng, Gang1 aLiu, Bing1 aFerguson, David, K.1 aRohwer, Jens, G.1 aYang, Yong uhttps://lauraceae.myspecies.info/node/2036100355nas a2200109 4500008004100000245004800041210004600089300001200135490000600147100002400153856006800177 1996 eng d00aStudies in Malagasy Lauraceae: II. New taxa0 aStudies in Malagasy Lauraceae II New taxa a463-4750 v61 avan der Werff, Henk uhttp://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/14666#page/460/mode/1up