Keanekaragaman dan Hubungan Kekerabatan Fenetik Spesies Anggota Famili Asteraceae di Jalur Pendakian Gunung Lawu Berdasarkan Karakter Morfologis

Abstract

Asteraceae is one of the most diverse families in Angiosperms with an estimated of 23,600 species worldwide. One of the interesting place to explore the diversity of Asteraceae is Mount Lawu which has high potential for ecotourism. The newest track commonly used to climb to Mount Lawu is through Candi Cetho hiking track that was established in 2015. The study on the diversity of Asteraceae species on Candi Cetho hiking track has not been done before. The objective of this study was to explore the species diversity of Asteraceae and to determine their taxonomic relationship based on morphological characters. Plant samples were collected using explorative method along the hiking track, covering the altitude of 1,440 to 2,550 m above sea level. Identification of plant specimens based on morphological characters showed the existence of 13 species. Cluster analysis on 50 morphological characters was done using Euclidean distance and UPGMA method resulted in the recognition of two clusters.  Based on the principal component analysis, the morphological characters which showed highest role in the grouping of Asteceae species into two clusters were the base of the upper leaf, flower color, and upper leaf attachment type.