A New Species of Actinodaphne (Lauraceae), A. lambirensis from Sarawak, Malaysia, and an Analysis of its Phylogenetic Position using MIG-seq and ITS Sequences

Abstract

A new species, Actinodaphne lambirensis Tagane, Yahara & N. Okabe (Lauraceae) from Lambir Hills National Park, Miri District, Sarawak, Malaysia, is described and illustrated. It is characterized by glabrous twigs and leaves, small lamina (4.3–9.2 × 1.7–2.8 cm), and long fruiting peduncles. Because only fruiting specimens were available, the position of A. lambirensis was determined by the phylogenetic trees based on 22 species of Actinodaphne, including the type species of the genus, A. pruinosa Nees, and 11 species of Neolitsea from Southeast Asia using multiplexed inter-simple sequence repeats genotyping by sequencing (MIG-seq). Additionally, a phylogenetic tree was constructed using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences for 36 species of Actinodaphne and 40 species of Neolitsea that include our MIGseq samples and additional species for which ITS sequences were determined in previous studies. Both the MIG-seq tree and ITS tree supported A. lambirensis as belonging with Actinodaphne.