Distrbution of gynodioecy in flowering plants

Abstract

Based on literature data, a list of new gynodioecious species of angiosperms within the world flora is com-posed, which includes 444 species from 61 genera and 49 families. By now, the gynodioecy has been detected in 1573 species, 364 genera, 97 families, and 36 orders of flowering plants. The features of gynodioecy distribution in the families such as Caprifoliaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Moraceae, Thymelaeaceae, Lamiaceae, Ericaceae are considered. It has been shown that there are two types of gynodioecious plants: the first group, where hermaphroditic individuals form only perfect flowers (the vast majority of gynodioecious species), and the second group, where hermaphroditic individuals have both pistillate and staminate flowers (family Mora-ceae). In the majority of gynodioecious species of the first group, a stable relationship is confirmed between the presence of gynodioecy in a taxon and such ecological and biological characteristics as a significant number of species in the genus, predominance of perennial herbaceous plants, and wide distribution in the tem-perate zone. Ecological correlations in gynodioecious species of the second group (family Moraceae), as well as in representatives of the families Thymelaeaceae and Ericaceae appear in close connection with another set of characters: tree life forms and distribution in subtropical and tropical floras.