Coastal adaptation of Ligustrum japonicum Thunb. (Oleaceae).

- A case study of stomatal adaptation pattern into coastal forests -

Abstract

Plants in coastal areas have adapted to develop characteristic morphologies under various specific stresses. Ligustrum japonicum Thunb. (Oleaceae) grows from mountainous areas into coastal areas. To clarify the adaptive morphology of L. japonicum in coastal areas, we conducted morphological and anatomical analyses using coastal and inland populations from Kanagawa and Kochi prefectures, respectively. The results of morphological and anatomical analyses showed that stomatal size was smaller in coastal populations than in inland populations, which was common in Kanagawa and Kochi prefectures. To our knowledge, this is a remarkable result to adapt to coastal forests, suggesting that L. japonicum differentiated the coastal ecotype in the coastal area.