Abstract
Foliar micromorphological study was carried out on I. triloba, I. eriocarpa, I. alba, I. hederifolia, I. muricata, I. intrapilosa, I. asarifolia, I. batatas, I. aquatica, I. mauritiana, I. carnea, I.involucrata, I. nil, I. heterotricha and I. obscura to determine the patterns of variation in their epidermal characteristics and search for useful and stable anatomical characters for the identification of the species. Leaf epidermal features that provided useful specific distinctions are cell shape, anticlinal wall pattern, stomata shape, stomata type, trichome, cuticular striations, crystal, granular periclinal wall, stomata size, stomata index, scale and tannin. The characters revealed interrelationships among the Ipomoea species and also suggest their monophyly.
Highlights
Ipomoea is an exceptionally large and diverse genus in the family Convolvulaceae, it consists of about 600 species in strict and traditional concepts of the group (Austin and Huáman, 1996) or up to 1000 species in recent phylogenetic conceptions of the group (Manos et al, 2001; Miller et al, 2002; Wilkin, 1999)
The data recorded in this study showed that there are many anatomical variations between the 15 species of Ipomoea studied
I. hederifolia, I. muricata, I. heterotricha and I. obscura are closely related with the presence of irregular cell shape, wavy anticlinal wall, elliptic and paracytic stomata, eglandular trichomes except for some few characters which are different in them
Summary
Ipomoea is an exceptionally large and diverse genus in the family Convolvulaceae, it consists of about 600 species in strict and traditional concepts of the group (Austin and Huáman, 1996) or up to 1000 species in recent phylogenetic conceptions of the group (Manos et al, 2001; Miller et al, 2002; Wilkin, 1999). It is known that 38 species have been reportedly found in West Africa of which 30 have been recognized present in Nigeria. These species are commonly found in the Southern region, a few are found in the Northern location in the Savanna zones (Hutchinson and Dalziel, 1963). Ipomoea species are generally of vital economic importance ranging from ornamental, medicinal to culinary value. The high variability in Ipomoea species has created identification problems, a better system of classification and delimitation of the species using anatomical and biochemical characters is desirable. Shinner (1965) exploited the pollen character together with fruiting materials to dump both Meremia and Operculina into Ipomoea. Gross similarities in the pollen characteristics of the different species of Ipomoea have been reported by Vij and Sachdeva (1975), pollen characteristics cannot be used for species delimitation
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