Leaf anatomical variation in Cephalaria laevigata (dipsacaceae) under different ecological conditions

Abstract

The results of a multivariate morphometric study of leaf anatomical characters in different, geographically distant populations of the taxon Cephalaria laevigata from Serbia and Romania are presented with the aim to reveal the trends of population differentiation. Analyses were performed on a cross-section of 105 leaves collected from 10 populations. In order to establish the overall morphological variation and relationships between individuals from all populations, principal component analyses and canonical discriminant analysis were performed. Clustering analyses were carried out to explore whether the observed anatomical differences are a result of adaptive responses. Regression analysis was performed to identify the level of correlation between leaf anatomical characters and basic orographic, geological and bioclimatic habitat characteristics. Unexpectedly, in most of the characters there was discrepancy between leaf anatomy and climatic conditions, and the characters did not show significant regularities in the variability of their dimension neither in the vertical profile nor in relation to geological substrate. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 173030]

Keywords

• Cephalaria laevigata
• leaf anatomy
• statistical analysis