STUDIES ON LEJEUNEACEAE, I. PRELIMINARY STUDIES ON NEW GENERA OF LEJEUNEACEAE

Abstract

  Generic perimeters in Lejeuneaceae remain imprecise; cytological studies allow redefinition of genera, but the impossibility of using herbarium material (and the often limited and frequently sterile types) for modern systematics limits the application of such data. Relying on study of living plants, supplemented by study of relevant types, some eight new genera (seven not previously described) are segregated. These are: Vitalianthus Schust. & Giancotti, segregated from Drepanolejeunea (Spr.) Schiffn.; Pluvianthus Schust. & Schaefer-Verwimp, whose sole species had been erroneously ascribed to Strepsilejeunea (Spr.) Schiffn.; Prionocolea (Schust.) Schust., elevated from its previous status as a subgenus of Cyclolejeunea Evs.; Cryptogynolejeunea Schust., whose species had been erroneously assigned to Lejeunea subg. Hygrolejeunea Spr. [Hygrolejeunea (Spr.) Schiffn.] ; Dicladolejeunea Schust., with two species, D. anomala, sp. n. and D. saccatiloba (Steph.) Schust., the latter erroneously placed before in Taxilejeunea; Bromeliophila Schust., whose only species had been previously assigned to Peltolejeunea, Anomalolejeunea and Lejeunea; Fulfordianthus Gradstein (1992), identical to Thysanopsis Schust. (1992, without Latin diagnosis), with two species previously placed in Thysananthus or “Thysano-Lejeunea”; and Macrocolura Schust., a segregate from Colura Dumort., based on three neotropical taxa. Of these eight genera, only Dicladolejeunea is unknown cytologically. These genera are based on taxa previously attributed to a wide variety of genera, i.e.: Hygrolejeunea, Drepanolejeunea, Strepsilejeunea, Cyclolejeunea, Taxilejeunea, Peltolejeunea, Anomalolejeunea, Thysananthus and Colura. The bases for excluding the new genera here described from these earlier-described genera are, in each case, examined.