Silva et al. 2017b (Article) Nidularioid Complex

Nested in chaos: Insights on the relations of the ‘Nidularioid Complex’ and the evolutionary history of Neoregelia (Bromelioideae-Bromeliaceae)

Author(s):—F.S. Silva, A.K.L. Venda, H.M. Hallbritter, E.M.C. Leme, A. Mantovani & R.C. Forzza

Publication:—Brittonia online: 1-15. (2017) — DOI

Abstract:—The ‘Nidularioid Complex’ is a group within the Bromelioideae usually characterized
by inflorescences nested within water-impounding foliar rosettes. Currently, it comprises
six genera: Canistrum, Canistropsis, Edmundoa, Neoregelia, Nidularium, and Wittrockia.
While most of these genera occur in eastern Brazil, the distribution of Neoregelia is disjunct
between the Atlantic Rainforest and Amazonia. Previous phylogenetic studies have not
addressed the monophyly of and relationships among these genera; therefore, we undertook
a phylogenetic study of the Nidularioid Complex with emphasis on the genus Neoregelia and
its subgenera. A parsimony-based phylogenetic analysis with 101 morphological characters
retrieved the Nidularioid Complex as non-monophyletic. Nidularium and Edmundoa were
monophyletic. Neoregelia was recovered as non-monophyletic due to the inclusion within it of
the Amazonian subgenus Hylaeaicum. These results highlight the need for revision of the
generic classification of Bromelioideae, pending increased sampling of taxa and characters.

Keywords:—Amazonia, Atlantic Rainforest, Leaf anatomy, Morphological characters, Phylogeny.