Abstract
Pollen morphology and exine structure of the seven Hymenocallis Salisb. species present in Venezuela were investigated using scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) electron microscopy. Pollen grains of all species are monosulcate, heteropolar, with bilateral symmetry, oblate to peroblate, heterobrochate, semitectate-columellate, possess unequal tectal surfaces, and are clavate or baculate when viewed with TEM. They present two equatorial apexes. When observed under SEM their surfaces appear as granulate; however, it is evident from TEM that they are in fact constituted by pila. All the species possess very large pollen (ranging from 64 to 85 μm and from 125 to 155 μm for polar and equatorial axes, respectively), and no relationship was evident between pollen size and chromosome number. All the taxa are also very similar in relation to their pollen outline, ornamentation and internal structure, thus indicating that the genus is accurately delimited from the palynological point of view and that discrete characteristics can only be used in some cases to delimit individual species.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alves-Araujo A, Ribeiro dos Santos FA, Alves M (2007) Caracterização palinológica de espécies de Amaryllidaceae sensu stricto ocorrentes no nordeste brasileiro. Acta Bot Bras 21:967–976
Avetisian EM (1950) Simplified method of pollen preparation by acetolysis [in Russian]. Zhurn Russk Bot Obsc Akad Nauk SSSR 35:385
Campbell L (2008) Amaryllidaceae. In: Hokche O, Berry P, Huber O (eds) Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela. Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela Dr. Tobías Lasser, Caracas, Venezuela, pp 676–677
Cruden RW (2009) Pollen grain size, stigma depth and style length: the relationships revisited. Plant Syst Evol 278:223–238
Cruden RW, Lyon DL (1985) Correlations among stigma depth, style length, and pollen grain size: Do they reflect function or phylogeny? Bot Gaz 146:143–149
Erdtman G (1966) Pollen morphology and plant taxonomy–angiosperms: an introduction to the study of pollen grains and spores. Hafner Publishing Company, New York
Hesse M, Halbritter H, Zetter R, Weber M, Buchner R, Frosch-Radivo A, Ulrich S (2009) Pollen terminology. An illustrated handbook, Springer-Heidelberg
Huang TC (1972) Pollen flora of Taiwan. National Taiwan University Botany Department Press, Taipei
Meerow A (1984) Karyotype evolution in the Amaryllidaceae. Herbertia 40:139–154
Meerow AW, Dehgan B (1985) The auriculate pollen grain of Hymenocallis quitoensis Herb. (Amaryllidaceae) and its systematic implications. Am J Bot 72:540–547
Meerow AW, Dehgan B (1988) Pollen morphology of the Eucharidae (Amaryllidaceae). Am J Bot 75:1857–1870
Meerow AW, Fay MF, Guy CL, Li QB, Zaman FQ, Chase MW (1999) Systematics of Amaryllidaceae based on cladistic analysis of plastid rbcL and trnL-F sequence data. Am J Bot 86:1325–1345
Meerow AW, Guy CL, Li QB, Yang SL (2000) Phylogeny of the American Amaryllidaceae based on nrDNA ITS sequences. Syst Bot 25:708–726
Meerow AW, Guy CL, Li QB, Clayton JR (2002) Phylogeny of the tribe Hymenocallideae (Amaryllidaceae) based on morphology and molecular characters. Ann Mo Bot Gard 89:400–413
Potonié R, Kremp GOW (1955) Die Sporae dispersae des Rhurkarbons ihre Morphographie und Stratigraphie mit Ausblicken auf Auten anderer Gebiete und Zeitabschnitte. Palaeontographica 98:1–136 (Abt. B)
Ravikumar C, Nair PKK (1982) Pollen morphological analysis of Hymenocallis littoralis Salisb. and H. pedalis. SEM and light microscopic study. J Palynol 18:43–54
Raymúndez MB (1997) Estudios citogenéticos, embriológicos y morfoanatómicos en especies venezolanas del género Hymenocallis Salisb. (Amaryllidaceae). Tesis Doctoral. Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad Central de Venezuela, Caracas
Raymúndez MB, Escala M, Xena de Enrech N (2005) Morfoanatomía foliar en la delimitación de especies del género Hymenocallis Salisb. (Amaryllidaceae J. St.-Hil.) presentes en Venezuela. Acta Bot Venez 28:301–319
Roubik DW, Moreno JE (1991) Pollen and spores of Barro Colorado Island. Monographs in Systematic Botany, vol 36. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis
Salisbury J (1812) Hymenocallis. Trans Hort Soc London 1:338
Sealy JR (1954) Review of the genus Hymenocallis. Kew Bull 2:201–240
Traub HP (1962) Key to the subgenera, alliances and species of Hymenocallis. Pl Life 18:55–72
Traub HP (1980) Sections and alliances, genus Hymenocallis Salisb. Pl Life 36:46–49
Tropicos on line: http://www.tropicos.org/. Accessed March 2011
Walker JW, Doyle JA (1975) The bases of angiosperm phylogeny: palynology. Ann Mo Bot Gard 62:664–723
Acknowledgments
We remember with sympathy the late Ramon Fontarnau (Universitat de Barcelona), who frequently helped us with the use of the scanning electron microscope, and we also acknowledge the assistance with electron microscopy provided by Ana Domínguez and Núria Cortadellas (Universitat de Barcelona). Dion Devey (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew) is thanked for reading the text and correcting the English and Miguel Ángel Canela (Universidad de Navarra) for the assistance with statistics. Two anonymous referees and the associate editor Michael Hesse are thanked for their advice, which has been very useful for improving the manuscript. This work was subsidized by MICINN-Spanish Government (projects CGL2007-64839-C02-01 and 02, CGL2010-22234-C02-01 and 02/BOS) and GReB (Grup de Recerca en Biodiversitat i Biosistemàtica vegetals; Generalitat de Catalunya, project 2009SGR439).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Martín, J., Raymúndez, M.B., Vallès, J. et al. Palynological study of the Venezuelan species of the genus Hymenocallis (Amaryllidaceae). Plant Syst Evol 298, 695–701 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-011-0579-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-011-0579-z