LEAF AND STEM ANATOMY IN IRANIAN BOLBOSCHOENUS SPECIES (CYPERACEAE), AS RELATED TO THEIR TAXONOMY AND ECOLOGY

Anatomical features of Iranian species, Bolboschoenus affinis, B. glaucus, B. maritimus, B. planiculmis and B. schmidii, were compared in an attempt to identify diagnostic characters that support morphological differentiation and to discover possible relationships between the anatomical and ecological differentiation of species. The leaf and stem anatomy visible on cross sections was studied to complement formerly used diagnostic characters in fruit anatomy. The presence and arrangement of bulliform cells in the leaf epidermis and subepidermal layers appeared to vary between some species, as did the presence of air cavities between the vascular bundles. We found that stem anatomy characters were not that much decisive in the differentiation of species. Although most of the anatomical characters supported the taxonomical differentiation based on morphology and fruit anatomy, they would not be decisive when used alone. In contrast, anatomical adaptations to habitat conditions seem to be clear in certain species and correspond to their ecology, i.e., the adaptation to drought and salinity or flooding conditions.