Are Ophiolitic Substrates Drivers for Reticulate Evolution in <i>Armeria</i> (Plumbaginaceae)?

ABSTRACT: Ultramafic substrates can play a role in fostering ecological adaptation and microevolutionary dynamics. The Armeria denticulata complex includes two flowering plant species (A. denticulata and A. saviana): the former is a strict serpentinophyte endemic to Tuscany and western Liguria, while the latter grows on limestone/jasper in a small area of southern Tuscany. Intriguingly, northern Apennine populations of A. arenaria subsp. praecox, a subspecies otherwise endemic to the western Alps, grow on ophiolites. Finally, the central-southern Italian endemic A. gracilis is instead linked to limestone. We aimed at understanding whether substrate specificity and/or hybridization promoted speciation in the A. denticulata complex, despite similar ecol

SUBMITTER: Tiburtini M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12162267 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature