Abstract
Molecular studies indicate that Penaeaceae, Oliniaceae, and the monospecific families Alzateaceae and Rhynchocalycaceae form a clade of Myrtales. Of these four families, Penaeaceae have tracheids with vestured pits, whereas the others have septate fibers lacking vestures; all have vestured pits in vessels. Tracheid presence in Penaeaceae may be related to the arid South African habitats of the family. Presence of vestures on tracheids in families with vestured vessel pits is one indication that imperforate elements are tracheids and are conductive cells, whereas fiber-tracheids and libriform fibers are non-conductive. Tracheids occur widely in angiosperms and may be plesiomorphies or apomorphies. Combretaceae, the first branch of the Myrtales clade, has a great diversity of vesture features in vessels compared to the Penaeaceae alliance families. Alzatea has vestures that spread over the inside of the vessels, whereas in most taxa of the alliance, vestures are confined to the pit cavities and pit apertures. Vestures in the alliance tend to be globular in shape, and are bridged together by strands of wall material. Lignotubers and roots in Penaeaceae have vestures much like those in stems. Only a few species and genera (notably Alzatea) of the alliance have vesture features the pattern of which correlates with the current taxonomic system. Vestured pits should be viewed from the inside surface of vessels as well as the outer surface, and although sectional views of vestured pits are infrequent, they are very informative. Studies that explore diversity from one order or family to another are needed and offer opportunities for understanding the evolutionary significance of this feature.
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Acknowledgements
Special mention should go to the work of Ger J. C. M van Vliet and others in the wood anatomy of Myrtales project, which was the idea of Pieter Baas, and which has produced a number of excellent studies. Individuals who provided me with material include David Boufford, Vicki Funk, and Chris Niezgoda. My fieldwork in South Africa was aided by grants from the National Science Foundation and the Simon Guggenheim Foundation. That fieldwork would have not been successful without the help of Elsie Esterhuysen (University of Cape Town) and the staff of the Compton Herbarium (especially John Rourke). Thanks go to Steve Windhager, for availability of a scanning electron microscope at Santa Barbara Botanic Garden.
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Carlquist, S. What the Penaeaceae alliance (Myrtales) tells us about the nature of vestured pits in xylem. Brittonia 69, 276–294 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12228-017-9477-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12228-017-9477-1