Tulipa sylvestris subsp. australis with seedpod (right), 1804

The Tulipeae (syn. Tulipoideae) Duby[1] is a tribe of monocotyledon perennial, herbaceous mainly bulbous flowering plants in the Liliaceae (lily) family. As originally conceived by Duby (1828), "Tulipaceae" was a tribe within Liliaceae, consisting of the genera Tulipa, Fritillaria and Lilium. [1]

Description

Herbaceous non-climbing bulbous plants. Bulbs consisting of a single scale. Anthers pseudo-basifixed. fruit consists of a loculicidal capsule, seeds not winged. Tetrasporic embryo-sac formation with 7–8 nuclei. Nucella having a short base. Vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae (VAM) non-Clintonia type. Chromosomes large - 2–11 μm (1–6 μm in Gagea). Genome size (3)4–25(70) pg, x = (9)12. Polyploidy common.[2]

Taxonomy

Tulipeae remained a core group of the Liliaceae, containing the type genus, Lilium for most of its taxonomic history. For instance, Bentham and Hooker (1883),[3] placed Lilium together with Tulipa and five other genera in Liliaceae tribe Tulipeae.

In the modern era, Takhtadzhi︠an described the tribe as having four genera:[4]

Later only Tulipa and Erythronium were included, and Gagea was added. Tulipeae has been variously constructed, chiefly as either a tribe of the subfamily Lilioideae,[5] or a subfamily of Liliaceae itself (Tulipoideae).[6] However it has been proposed that Gagea should be in its own tribe, the Lloydieae.[7]

The evolutionary and phylogenetic relationships of Tulipeae within Liliaceae are shown in the following Cladogram.

Cladogram: Phylogeny and biogeography of the genera of the Liliaceae
Phylogenetic tree reflecting relationships based on molecular phylogenetic evidence.
*=Liliaceae sensu Tamura; EA=Eurasia NA=North America

Here, Tulipeae is shown as a clade within the broader construction of Lileae (sensu lato), or as a separate biogeographical tribe if the narrow sense of Lileae (sensu stricto) is adopted, with Lileae and Tulipeae as sister groups. The continuing use of Tulipeae as a separate tribe is supported by several authors.[7][2]

Genera

Genera (species)[2]

  • Amana Honda (5)
  • Erythronium L. (15)
  • Gagea Salisb. (=Lloydia Salisb.) (ca. 300)
  • Tulipa L. (ca. 150)

Gagea is sister to the other three genera.

Synonyms

  • Gageeae Rouy, Fl. France 12: 380. 1910.
  • Lloydieae Buxb., Bot. Arch. 38: 389. 1937.
  • Tulipoideae Kostel, Allg. Med.-Pharm. Fl. 1: 168. 1831.[2]

Notes

  1. ^ Holongia: A genus only recognised by Takhtadzhi︠an

References

Bibliography