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Systematics And Biogeography Of The Clusioid Clade (Malpighiales), Brad R. Ruhfel

Biological Sciences Faculty and Staff Research

The clusioids are a clade of flowering plants in the diverse rosid order Malpighiales. It includes five families (i.e., Bonnetiaceae, Calophyllaceae, Clusiaceae sensu stricto, Hypericaceae, and Podostemaceae) that form a conspicuous element of tropical forests worldwide and are economically important. Their phylogenetic and biogeographical history has remained uncertain, however, which has hindered our understanding of their evolution. I conducted the first taxon-rich multigene analysis of this important clade to clarify their phylogenetic relationships (Chapter 1). Plastid (cp:matK, ndhF, and rbcL) and mitochondrial (mt: matR) nucleotide sequence data from nearly 200 taxa produced a well-resolved clusioid phylogeny and indicate that several …

Edaphic, Microtopographic, And Light Characteristics Associated With The Endangered Running Buffalo Clover (Trifolium Stoloniferm) At The Blue Grass Army Depot, Madison County, Kentucky, Lance Austin Watt

Online Theses and Dissertations

Soil, microtopographic, and light parameters associated with federally endangered running buffalo clover (Trifolium stoloniferum) plants on the Blue Grass Army Depot, Richmond, KY, were examined during the 2004 and 2005 growing season. Study samples or measurements were determined at 27 "long-term" sites (plots which have had clover present since 1992-1994), 23 "disappeared" sites (plots which had clover in 1992-1994, but did not have plants present at the time of this study) and 25 random/control sites (randomly selected 1 m2 plots in areas in which running buffalo clover has never been reported).

Average precipitation on the Blue Grass Army Depot was …