Introduction

FundamentalsofPlantSystematics
MichaelG.Simpson

Whatisaplant?Howcanthisbeanswered?
1)Bycharacteristicsofplants:
Photosynthetic
Cellwalls
Spores
Sedentary
2)Byphylogeneticrelationships

Threemajorgroupsoflife!

Photosynthesis:Evolvedmultipletimes.

Howdidchloroplasts
evolve?

Byendosymbiosis:

PrimaryEndosymbiosis

SecondaryEndosymbiosis

Nonphotosyn.w/cellwalls&spores

Botany:studyoforganismstraditionally
calledplants[PlantKingdom]?
Photosyntheticeukaryotes,including:
euglenoids
dinoflagellates
brownplants
redalgae
greenplants:greenalgae+landplants
SlimeMolds,WaterMolds,Fungi
[Formerly,alsoincludedbacteria/bluegreen"algae"]

Inthiscourse:

Plants=LandPlants(Embryophytes)
1)

Amonophyleticgroup

2)

Whatmostpeoplemeanwhentheysay
plants,asinPlantSystematics.

LandPlantsEmbryophytes
Liverworts,Hornworts,Mosses

VascularPlantsTracheophytes
Lycophytes(Lycopods)

Isoetesorcuttii

Selaginellaapoda

Selaginellabigelovii

VascularPlants
Equisetophytes(Equisetales):Equisetum

Equisetumarvense
CommonHorsetail
Equisetumspp.
ScouringRush

VascularPlants
OphioglossoidFerns(Ophioglossales)

Ophioglossumcalifornicum

VascularPlantsTracheophytes
Psilotophytes
(incl.Psilotum,
Tmesipteris)

VascularPlantsTracheophytes
Marratiophytes

VascularPlants
LeptosporangiateFerns
(Polypodiales)

Dryopterisarguta
CoastalWoodFern

Polypodiumcalifornicum

CaliforniaPolypody

SeedPlants:Gymnosperms
Cycads

Cycascircinalis

Ginkgo

Ginkgobiloba

Conifers

Abiesconcolor
WhiteFir

Pinustorreyana
TorreyPine

Cupressusforbesii

TecateCypress

Gnetales

Welwitschiamirabilis

Ephedraspp.MormonTea

SeedPlants:AngiospermsFloweringPlants

Monocots

1cotyledon
1cotyledon

coleoptile
epicotyl

epicotyl

hypocotyl
radicle
coleorhiza

embryo
radicle

MONOCOTS

1cotyledon

parallel
venation
floralpartsin3s
(often)

Eudicots
seedcoat
endosperm
2cotyledons

epicotyl

embryo

hypocotyl
radicle

NONMONOCOT

netvenation

2cotyledons
floralpartsin4sor5s
(often)

Whystudyplants?Whyimportant?
Oxygen
Primaryproducers
Economicallyimportanttohumans
agriculturalplants(food):vegetables,fruits,seeds
flavoringplants:herbs&spices
euphoric/hallucinogenicplants
fiber,woodplants
medicinalplants
plantextracts:essentialoils,gums,rubber,etc.

WhatisSystematics?
Inclusiveoftaxonomy
Goalistoinferevolutionaryhistory
(phylogeny)
Usingalltypesofevidence

Whatis(biological)evolution?
DescentwithModification

Descent

Time

Theoriginofnewlifefrompreexistinglifeby
transferofDNAfromparenttooffspring
generationaftergeneration.

Descentresults
inalineage
(clade)!
Lineageorclade=
asequenceof
ancestors(parents)
anddescendants
(offspring)
Involvestransferof
DNAthrough
spaceandtime

Whatismodified?

Geneticmaterial:

DNA
(DeoxyriboNucleicAcid)

Twomechanismsfor
evolutionarychange?
NaturalSelectionnonrandom,directedby
survivorship&reproductiveability
Geneticdriftrandom,directedbychance
events

Whatisafunctionalfeaturethatresultsin
increasedsurvivorshipandreproductive
ability?
Adaptation

Taxonomy:D.I.N.C.
Description
Identification
Nomenclature
Classification

Description
Assignment/listing of features or attributes to a taxon
character
=afeature
e.g.,flowercolor

characterstates
=twoormoreformsofacharacter
e.g.,white,red,yellow

Identification
Associatinganunknowntaxonwithaknownone
How?
taxonomickey
comparetoaphotograph/illustration
comparetoaspecimen
askanexpert

Key(dichotomous/indented):
1.Stamensfusedatbaseintoatube...............Dichelostemma
1'Stamensnotfusedatbaseintoatube
Lead: 2.Fertilestamens3...................................................... BrodiaeaLead:2'
Fertilestamens6
3.Stamensstronglywingedatbase...................... Bloomeria
3'Stamensnotstronglywingedatbase................ Muilla

Couplet=twoLeads

Key(dichotomous/indented):

1Ovaryinferior

2Ovule1percarpel.......................................................................................................Dilatris

2Ovules2ormorepercarpel
3Ovules2percarpel...................................................................................Haemodorum
3'Ovules57percarpel.................................................................................Lachnanthes

1Ovarysuperior

4Perianthactinomorphic;ovulespercarpel.........................................................Xiphidium

4Perianthzygomorphic;ovules14percarpel
5Fertilestamen1...............................................................................................Pyrrorhiza
5Fertilestamens3
6Stamensunequal,thetwolateroposteriorreduced;ovules34percarpel....Schiekia
6'Stamensequal;ovule1percarpel
7Inflorescencearaceme;functionalcarpel1;stylesubterminal.............Barberetta
7'Inflorescenceathyrse;functionalcarpels3;styleterminal..............Wachendorfia

Nomenclature
Formalmeansofnaminglife.
E.g.,binomialnomenclatureforspeciesnames:
ForAdenostomafasciculatumHook.&Arn.
Adenostoma=genusname
fasciculatum=specificepithet
Adenostomafasciculatum=speciesname
Hooker&Arnott=authorsofspeciesname

Classification
=placingobjects,e.g.,life,intosometypeof
order.
Taxon=ataxonomicgroup(plural=taxa).

RankClassification
Hierarchicaleachhigherrankisinclusiveoflowerranks

Rank
Example
Ending
Phylum
Magnoliophyta
phyta
Class
Liliopsida
opsida
Order
Liliales
ales
Family
Liliaceae
aceae
Genus
Lilium
Species
Liliumparryi

Howtoclassifylife
Pheneticclassification
Basedonoverallsimilarity
Thoseorganismsmostsimilartooneanotherare
classifiedmorecloselytogether.

Problemwithpheneticclass.:
Canbearbitrary,
e.g.,classifythese:

Phylogeneticclassification
Basedonknown(inferred)evolutionaryhistory.
Advantage:
Classificationreflectspatternofevolution
Classificationnotambiguous

Alloflifeisinterconnectedbydescent.
TAXA

lineage
or clade
TIME

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

TAXA

TIME
speciation

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

Apomorphy
=derived(new)feature,e.g.,
sporophyll>carpel
(ancestralfeature) (apomorphy)

Presenceofcarpelsanapomorphy
forfloweringplants.

Taxaaregroupedbyapomorphies
Apomorphiestheresultofevolution.
Taxasharingapomorphiesunderwentsame
evolutionaryhistory,
shouldbegroupedtogether.

Phylogeny=EvolutionaryHistory
TAXA

Apomorphy
fortaxonD
Apomorphies
fortaxaB&C
TIME

Apomorphy
fortaxaBF

Representedas:Cladogram/PhylogeneticTree

Commonancestry
TAXA

TIME
common ancestor
(of taxon D, E, & F)
common ancestor
(of taxon A & taxa B-F)

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

Splitofonelineageintotwo?
Evolutionarydivergence.

Canleadtospeciation
originofnewspecies
frompreexistingspecies

TAXA

TIME
speciation

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

Whatisamonophyleticgroup?
agroupconsistingof:
acommonancestor+
alldescendentsofthatcommonancestor

TAXA

TIME
speciation

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

TAXA

monophyletic
group

TIME
common ancestor
(of taxon D, E, & F)
common ancestor
(of taxon A & taxa B-F)

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

Relationship

=recencyofcommonancestry
i.e.,taxasharingacommonancestor
morerecentintimearemorecloselyrelated
thanthosesharingcommonancestorsmore
distantintime.

Example:

Arefishmorecloselyrelatedtosharksorto
humans?

Shark

TIME

Fish

Humans

Shark

Fish

Humans

TIME
common ancestor of
Fish and Humans

common ancestor of
Sharks, Fish, and Humans

Vertebrata
Osteichthyes
Shark

TIME

Fish

Humans

monophyletic
group
common ancestor of
Fish and Humans

common ancestor of
Sharks, Fish, and Humans

Major goal in systematics

today:
Recognize only monophyletic
groups

Polyphyletic group
Group with more than one common
ancestor.
(Common ancestor of components of
group is not a member of the group.)

TAXA

monophyletic
group

TIME
common ancestor
(of taxon D, E, & F)
common ancestor
(of taxon A & taxa B-F)

Cladogram or Phylogenetic Tree

Group consisting of B, C, E, & F is

polyphyletic:

Lotus
Lotus s.l. is not
monophyletic.
It is polyphyletic!

Type:
Lotus corniculatus L.

Species
Planataru
m

Therefore, we now
recognize three
monophyletic genera
(formerly all Lotus)

Acmisp
on
Hosack
ia
Lotus
s.s.
Type

Paraphyleticgroup
Consistofcommonancestorbutnotall
descendents

Dicots
paraphyletic!

Featuresthatdefinedtraditional
Dicots(twocotyledonsinembryo
seed)areprimitive(notapomorphies)

Monocots
monophyletic

Major goal in systematics

today:
Recognize only monophyletic
groups
Polyphyletic and paraphyletic groups
distort evolutionary history, should
not be recognized.

Eudicots
monophyletic!

Whystudysystematics?
Foundationofbiology
Integrative,unifyingscience
Practicalvalueeconomicallyimportantplants
Conservationbiologyrare/endangeredspp.
Intellectuallychallenging/fun