Danaea (Marattiaceae) keeps diversifying, part 2: phylogeny and identification key for 81 taxa

Abstract

<p>We have produced a near-complete phylogeny for the neotropical fern genus <i>Danaea (Marattiaceae)</i>. The phylogeny is based on four loci of the chloroplast DNA and shows reconstructions of the evolutionary relationships between 68 of the currently recognized 81 taxa of Danaea. A parallel paper (Keskiniva & Tuomisto 2024) draws on this phylogeny to describe 18 new species; here we discuss the phylogeny and its taxonomical implications more broadly. We propose three new synonyms: <i>D. atlantica</i> Christenh. & al. (= D. <i>geniculata</i>), D. draco Christenh. (= D. <i>polymorpha</i>), and D. <i>moralesiana </i>A. Rojas (= D. <i>erecta</i>). On the other hand, we consider D. <i>jamaicensis </i>Underw., which has been synonymized before, to be a distinct species. In addition, we propose that D. <i>xushana </i>is a hybrid between D. <i>simplicifolia </i>and D. <i>nigrescens</i>. We also provide an open-access online key to the 81 taxa. The key is available at https://keys.lucidcentral.org/keys/v4/neo_fern_genus_danaea/.</p>