Pollen Morphology of the Woody Fabaceae in Korea

Abstract

The pollen morphology of 31 taxa, representing all woody species from 12 genera of Fabaceae in Korea, was examined by light microscope and scanning electron microscope. The pollen grains were monad and prolate spheroidal or rarely subprolate in equatorial view. The pollen grain aperture was trizonocolporate or rarely trizonooperculate, which does not occur in the other families of Fabales in Korea. The exine showed a great variety of sculpture pattern, i.e. psilate, microperforate, densely microperforate, perforate, polygonal perforate, macroperforate, macroperforate with granules in holes, polygonal macroperforate, verrucate with pitted perforate striae, verrucate-perforate, granulate, rugulate, reticulate or refined reticulate. The pollen morphological data supported the idea that the genera Echinosophora and Sophora were congeneric. Caragana (Galegeae) was quite close to the Sophora group (Maackia, Sophora and Echinosophora) of the Sophoreae in each measured pollen parameter and exine sculpture pattern. Eleven genera of Fabaceae were recognized based on differences in aperture type, pollen grain shape and exine pattern, and a generic pollen key of the woody Fabaceae in Korea was developed. A key to pollen types of Lespedeza was also suggested. The examined taxa of Coronilla and Wisteria were recognized by their exine patterns.