Morphometric Leaf Variation in Oaks (Quercus L.) of Azerbaijan

Abstract

The aim of this study was the assessment of interpopulation and intrapopulation of the oak leaf morphology and variability for new sources of genetic diversity and relationships between different population origins. Therefore, we aimed to demonstrate segregation among Quercus species in Azerbaijan and to present morphological variations within and among the species. Variations within and among populations of species were detected by cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA). Our results showed that the leaf characters presented a high differentiation of studied oak species in PCA at the population level. The relationships between Q. robur subsp. pedunculiflora (K. Koch) Menitsky, Q. petraea subsp. iberica, Q. macranthera subsp. macranthera showed complex groups in CA. We obtained discrimination among the Quercus species from Azerbaijan based on leaf characters, which is quite useful for those herbarium specimens without acorns and in other systematic observations.The aim of this study was the assessment of interpopulation and intrapopulation of the oak leaf morphology and variability for new sources of genetic diversity and relationships between different population origins. Therefore, we aimed to demonstrate segregation among Quercus species in Azerbaijan and to present morphological variations within and among the species. Variations within and among populations of species were detected by cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA). Our results showed that the leaf characters presented a high differentiation of studied oak species in PCA at the population level. The relationships between Q. robur subsp. pedunculiflora (K. Koch) Menitsky, Q. petraea subsp. iberica, Q. macranthera subsp. macranthera showed complex groups in CA. We obtained discrimination among the Quercus species from Azerbaijan based on leaf characters, which is quite useful for those herbarium specimens without acorns and in other systematic observations.