Cypsela micro-macromorphological characteristics of selected taxa of Centaurea L. from Turkey and their systematic importance

ABSTRACT In this study, the cypsela micro-macromorphological characteristics of 15 Centaurea L. taxa, from the seven sections from Turkey were investigated using Light Microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy techniques. The studied taxa are C. goksivriensis M. Bona, C. calcitrapa subsp. calcitrapa L., C. calcitrapa subsp. cilicica (Boiss. & Bal.) Wagenitz, C. glastifolia L., C. amanicola Hub.-Mor., C. cataonica Boiss. & Hausskn. in Boiss., C. haradjianii Wagenitz, C. haussknechtii Boiss., C. regia Boiss. var. regia, C. sclerolepis Boiss., C. spicata Boiss., C. solstitialis L., C. behen L., C. rigida Banks & Sol., and C. antitauri Hayek. They belong to sections Acrocentron (Cassini) DC., Calcitrapa (Heister ex Fabr.) DC., Chartolepis (Cass.) DC, Cynaroides Boiss., Mesocentron (Cass.) DC, Microlophus (Cass.) DC., Pseudophaeopappus Wagenitz. Cypsela characteristics such as shape, size, colour, and surface pattern, hair structure, length, and colour of pappus are studied. Cypselas are 1.99 to 9.95 mm long and their width is between 1.01 and 3.73 mm. The pappus is 2.21 to 3.16 mm long. The pappus is generally straw-coloured, brown or whitish and barbellate but C. goksivriensis distinguished by its purple pappus and C. glastifolia by its plumose pappus. C. calcitrapa subsp. calcitrapa and C. calcitrapa subsp. cilicica do not have pappus. Scanning Electron Microscope analysis shows five different cypsela surface patterns for the studied species: reticulate, smooth, undulate, smooth-undulate, undulate-ruminate. A key to the taxa has been provided on the basis of these characteristics. The cypsela micro-macromorphological characteristics provide distinctive data for infrageneric classification for the studied species.