Data from: The supposedly well-known carbonate indicator Tortella tortuosa (Pottiaceae, Bryophyta) split into eight species in Europe ...

• Main Authors: Hedenäs, Lars, Köckinger, Heribert
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2023
• Subjects: FOS Biological sciences; Morphology; new species; split network; Arctic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.ngf1vhj0b; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.ngf1vhj0b

We present a first treatment of the Tortella tortuosa complex for Europe. We analysed molecular relationships based on the nuclear ITS and the plastid atpB-rbcL and rps4 in a network context and thereafter characterized the identified entities by their morphology. We found eight morphologically and molecularly distinct entities at the species level, which are also supported in ASAP analyses of the molecular data; one species includes two varieties. In some cases, nuclear and plastid data suggest different relationships and we found a few likely recent hybrid collections. To the main characters of taxonomic importance belong stem anatomy, leaf shape and papillosity. We describe three species as new: T. commutata (a widespread plant; including the new var. valida), T. dolomitica (known only from the Alps) and T. splendida (an Arctic-alpine element), replacing T. arctica auct. For T. angustifolia and T. robusta (both montane) new combinations at the species level are provided. Tortella bambergeri (a ... : In total, 99 Tortella tortuosa complex specimens were included in the molecular portion of this study, including 72 specimens that were included in earlier Tortella studies by the authors, five specimens which sequences were downloaded from GenBank and 22 specimens which sequences were newly generated for the present study. We studied the nuclear internal transcribed spacers 1 and 2 (ITS) and the plastid atpB-rbcL spacer (atpB-rbcL) and the rps4 gene + trnS-rps4 spacer (rps4). The new sequences were generated as described by Hedenäs (2015: Tortella rigens (Bryophyta, Pottiaceae): relationships, regional variation, and conservation aspects. – Pl. Syst. Evol. 301: 1361-1375.). In the final data set, all three sequences were available for all species except T. alpicola and T. spitsbergensis, for which rps4 was missing. Nucleotide sequence fragments were edited and assembled for each DNA region using PhyDE® 0.9971 (http://www.phyde.de/index.html; accessed 22 November 2018). The assembled sequences were aligned ...