Karyomorphological study of Taiwanese Tricyrtis (Liliaceae) and the taxonomic implication

Abstract

Taiwanese Tricyrtis consists of two sections and four species, namely sect. Hirtae: T. formosana, T. lasiocarpa, T. ravenii, and sect. Tricyrtis: T. suzukii. The taxonomic treatments of the species in Taiwanese Tricyrtis have been complicated heretofore. To elucidate the inter- and intra-sectional relationships of the two sections, the detailed karyomorphological analyses of all four species were applied in the present study. The chromosome number and the karyotype of T. suzukii were reported here for the first time. Although all species showed the basic chromosome number, x=13, and the diploid chromosome number, 2n=26, the two sections were distinguishable by their karyotypes. However, the intra-sectional karyotypes showed the similarities, i.e., the three species (T. formosana, T. lasiocarpa, T. ravenii) in sect. Hirtae exhibited 2n=26=4Lst+14m+6sm+2st and T. suzukii 2n=26=4Lst+14m+5sm+1st+2t. in sect. Tricyrtis,