Proposed Symposium Title: CURRENT RESEARCH IN BORAGINALES
Abstract: The Boraginales, accepted here as 8–10 families and ca. 3000 species, represent a tremendous morphological and ecological diversity. Members of the Boraginales occur on all continents except Antarctica and numerous instances of long-distance dispersal have been documented. In this symposium, we present current research on the Boraginales as a whole, reviewing the phylogeny, classification, and biogeography of members of the order. Individual talks focus on different clades within the order, including new molecular data and their implications for phylogeny and classification. Biogeographic history of several of these groups is reviewed, with an emphasis on past long-distance dispersal and adaptive radiation. Several studies have advanced our understanding of morphological evolution, esp. floral and fruit development, which both explains specific developmental trajectories (in Boraginales and beyond) and provides corroborating evidence for relationships and insights into the evolutionary switch to parasitism. In another study morphometric data are used to evaluate species delimitation and the recognition of new species of conservation importance. Reproductive biology of various groups is assessed, including the importance of polyploidy. In summary, the Boraginales serves as a model group to investigate numerous biologically important features to improve our understanding of patterns and processes of evolutionary change across angiosperms.
Speaker 1: Weigend, M. (et al.)
Nees-Institute for Biodiversity of Plants, University of Bonn, Meckenheimer Allee 170, 53115, Bonn, Germany
mweigend@uni-bonn.de
Progress in the phylogeny, classification, and historical biogeography of the Boraginales
Speaker 2: Simpson, M.G. (et al.)
Department of Biology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA
msimpson@sdsu.edu
And update on the phylogeny, classification, and biogeography of the popcorn flowers (subtribe Amsinckiinae, Boraginaceae).
Speaker 3: M. Vasile (et al.)
Nees-Institute for Biodiversity of Plants, University of Bonn, Meckenheimer Allee 170, 53115, Bonn, Germany
m.vasile@uni-bonn.de
Phylogeny, classification, and biogeography of Andean Phacelia (Hydrophyllaceae).
Topics (Up to three): Biogeography / Phylogeography
Topic 2: Development and Structure
Topic 3: Systematics and taxonomy
Justification: The symposium will focus on Boraginales, a subcosmopolitan angiosperm group. Presentations will tie together many of the individual symposium topics in case studies across the order. Systematics and taxonomy based on bioinformatics and phylogenomics will be the focus of several talks. Historical biogeography and aspects of structure and development will be discussed in an explicit phylogenetic framework. Other talks will focus on reproductive biology of specific groups, with a review of rarity and conservation biology. Overall, we aim to present a multidisicplinary view on current research on this clade of flowering plants, incorporating various aspects of evolutionary biology.
