Broad leaf firmoss (Huperzia crassifolia Lycopodiaceae), a new species based on morphological and molecular

NEWS - Researchers report a new species of firmoss from China, Huperzia crassifolia, described based on morphological characters and molecular evidence. The new species resembles H. javanica Sw. (C.Y.Yang, 1989), particularly in leaf shape and serrations, but can be distinguished by the seasonal leaf constriction zone, leaf margin and pinnae color.

A research team from Qiannan Normal College for Nationalities, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Chongqing Institute of Medical Plant Cultivation confirmed H. crassifolia is distinct from all previously known species. It is morphologically distinct with a thick coriaceous texture, elliptical to slightly oblanceolate pinnae and a well-differentiated seasonal constriction zone.

Phylogenomic reconstruction using whole chloroplast genome sequences identified H. crassifolia as sister to H. sutchueniana and distantly related to H. javanica, H. nanlingensis and H. serrata. The genome size of 2C = 17.2 pg indicates the new species is tetraploid, while H. javanica is diploid and has a genome size of 8.7 pg.

Broad leaf firmoss or 厚叶石杉 (Chinese pinyin: hou ye shi shan) is a terrestrial, naked-seeded plant currently only known from Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, and Chongqing, growing on humus-rich soils in shaded conditions formed in broadleaf forest undergrowth at elevations of 1100-1900 meters.

The morphological variation of the new species is considered semi-cryptic so it is often reported as a form of H. javanica. The uncertainty is caused by morphological differentiation. The researchers explored another more powerful approach by integrating morphology and phylogenomics.

Several standard chloroplast DNA sequences showed very low DNA mutations in this ancient lycophyte lineage and therefore lacked resolution in species identification. The researchers showed that plastomes are a powerful approach to investigate species boundaries within the genus Huperzia.

The phylogenetic placement of the new species as sister to H. sutchueniana raises questions about its origin. H. sutchueniana differs from H. crassifolia and H. javanica by its sparsely toothed margins and lanceolate leaves. The genome size of H. crassifolia as a tetraploid, morphological conflicts and phylogenetic placement imply an allotetraploid derived from hybridization between H. javanica and H. sutchueniana.

Huperzia Bernh was first formally described by Johann Jakob Bernhardi (1774-1850) in 1801. This genus is highly adaptive, has 6 synonyms, includes more than 340 species and grows on land all over the world.

Original research

Guo Z-Y, Liu H-M, Wang K-K, Fujiwara T, Liu Z-Y, Zhang X-C, Schneider H (2024). Huperzia crassifolia (Lycopodiaceae), a new species from China based on morphological characters and molecular evidence. PhytoKeys 246: 27-42. DOI:10.3897/phytokeys.246.131046

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