THE RUBIACEAE OF Mexico: IS THE WORK IS ALREADY DONE?

Abstract

Background: The Rubiaceae family is one of the most diverse in Mexico, and it is the fourth in diversity among angiosperms. There have been several efforts to characterize its diversity, resulting in differences in the number of genera and species registered for Mexico: 77-113 genera and 510-707 species. This discrepancy highlights the need to critically review the studies that list the diversity of Rubiaceae of Mexico, with the aim of presenting an overview to elucidate the state of their knowledge. Questions: What is the diversity of the Rubiaceae in Mexico? At what taxonomic level is the problem? How are diversity and endemism distributed? What is the collection effort? Studied species: Rubiaceae Study site: Mexico Methods: A database was generated from the review of the main floristic works of Rubiaceae from Mexico, complemented with information from her-barium databases. Results: The Rubiaceae family in Mexico is represented by 111 genera, of which 17 are endemic, with 711 native species, 363 of which are endemic, and 13 exotic species. The most speciose states are Oaxaca (416), Chiapas (365) and Veracruz (318), in which 50 % of the endemism is concentrated. The collection effort suggests that 43 % of the territory sufficient collections. Conclusions: This work presents a revised taxonomic list and proposals that solve conflicts at generic level; highlighting the need to carry out taxonomic work focused on some groups and to continue with the efforts of collecting and reviewing herbaria for a more accurate approach to assessing the Rubiaceae diversity in Mexico.