Taxonomy of the Australian Nicotiana benthamiana complex (Nicotiana section Suaveolentes; Solanaceae): five species, four newly described, with distinct ranges and morphologies
Mark W. Chase
A B * , Luiz A. Cauz-Santos C , Steven Dodsworth D and Maarten J. M. Christenhusz A
A Department of Environment and Agriculture, Curtin University, Bentley, WA 6102, Australia.
B Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 3DS, UK.
C Department of Botany and Biodiversity Research, University of Vienna, Rennweg 14, A-1030 Vienna, Austria.
D School of Biological Sciences, University of Portsmouth, King Henry 1 Street, King Henry Building, Portsmouth, PO1 2DY, UK.
Australian Systematic Botany 35(5) 345-363 https://doi.org/10.1071/SB22009
Submitted: 5 March 2022 Accepted: 26 August 2022 Published: 29 September 2022
© 2022 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)
Abstract
Although some authors previously questioned the circumscription of Nicotiana benthamiana, it has never been treated taxonomically as more than a single widespread, variable species. A recent study employing phylogenetic and population genetic analyses has demonstrated that N. benthamiana comprises five species that are geographically and morphologically distinct. Here, we describe four new species in the N. benthamiana complex, namely, N. bilybara M.W.Chase & Christenh., N. candelabra M.W.Chase & Christenh., N. rupestris M.W.Chase & Christenh. and N. scopulorum M.W.Chase & Christenh., and illustrate all five. We provide descriptions, a diagnostic key and a table of morphological characters distinguishing these closely related species. The major morphological feature that distinguishes N. benthamiana from the other four species is its petiolate leaves that become sessile only near the apex of the inflorescence; N. candelabra is distinct in its bifacial branching, N. bilybara in its commonly winged petiole with an auriculate base, N. rupestris in the leafy apices of its calyx lobes, and N. scopulorum is the least morphologically divergent species, conforming most closely to the general description of the N. benthamiana species complex.
Keywords: Australian flora, inbreeding, integrative taxonomy, model species, plant viruses, river drainage basins, tropical Australian flora, widespread species.
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