Kaszab Zoltán (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 71. (Budapest 1979)

Szujkó-Lacza, J., Kováts, D. ; Rajczy, M.: Revision and numerical evaluation of the Hungarian Spergularia species (Caryophyllaceae)

S. salina by BUCHENAI and in 1919 ASCHERSHON & GRAEBNER published a new interspecific taxon between S. salina X S. campestris. LINNÉ (1753) used the name of campestris in the following manner: Arenaria rubra campestris. ASCHERSON & GRAEBNER (I. c.) said "Gesamtart S. rubra (A. u. G. Fl. Nordostd. Flach. 314) (1898) z. Th. No. 1391-1394". Notes: The "Gesamtart" in the flora work of ASCHERSON & GRAEBNER (1. c.) contains S. campestre, S. niceensis, S. echinosperma and S. Bocconii, without any distinction among them. These authors and many others changed the rank of variety (according to Linné) to species, which brought about more nomenclatorial problems later on. PRODAN'S (1953) opinion is that the hybrid of S. salina X campestris published by ASCHERSON & GRAEBNER (I. c.) a nomen nudum, and therefore, he described it as S. salontana. DILLENI (cf. LEBEL) was the first to mention an interesting character of S. salina: "heterosperma". J. and C. PRESL (1819) described S. salina, but they did not relate it to this character. It arose again at SCHUR (1866) as Lepigonum heterospermum, and more exactly at LEBEL (1. c), as the character of S. Dillenii. Moreover, Spergularia heterosperma at HELDREICH (1. c), S. heterosperma var. sperguloides at FOUCAUD in Monogr. Illustr. Spergularia, and S. media var. heterosperma at FENZL (in LEBEL 1844). LEBEL (1. c) did not pay special attention to this character, though said: the seeds are winged and unwinged. Among the characters this was also mentioned by MONNIER & RATTER (1964). But for these specialists including ASCHERSON & GRAEBNER the origin of S. salina was never doubtful. According to our investigations, on the same exemplare on two different branches in one of the capsules the seeds are light brown, flattened, densely tuberculate on the surface and in the other capsules in the apex of columella, the seeds are the same but in the base of the same columella often flattened seeds are found, smooth or densely tuberculated but winged. The number of this flattened, tuberculated and also winged seeds is usually small, and their localization in the capsules may explain the differences of the various opinions. THE QUALITATIVE CHARACTERS OF THE SPECIES S. media (L.) PRESL •— The leaves originating on the same node are of equal length, and are longer than the internode at the same node (Fig. 5) ; stipule broader at the base than high (Fig. 6); apex entire, obtuse angled (Fig. 6). The seeds are winged, flattened, dark brown (Fig. 7) and are arranged in the capsule so, that they half conceal each-other (Fig. 8). S. rubra (L.) J. et C. PRESL — The shoots rarely bear lateral branches. The leaves are of equal length, but usually shorter than the internode originating from the same node {Fig. 9), but on numerous exemplares the leaves are longer than the internode. Stipules scarious, setaceous, narrowed at the base and elongate from base to apex (Fig. 10). The seeds are subtrigonous, tuberculate, brown in colour (Fig. 11) arranged ananas-fruit-like on the coloumn (Fig. 12). S. salina (L.) J. et C. PRESL — The shoots and stipules resemble S. media (Fig. 13). The leaves are sometimes unequal on the same node (Fig. 14), but always are longer than the internode. The seeds are arranged in the capsule so that at the base some winged, flattened and tuberculated seeds are situated, over them are the unwinged seeds (Figs. 15-16). But on the same specimen, in an other capsule, only flattened tuberculated unwinged seeds may be present. Similarities between species pairs S. media and S. rubra have similar quantitative characters : 4, 9. S. media and S. salina have similar characters: 2, 9, 10, 11. S. rubra and S. salina have two similar characters: 3, 6. The behaviour of the three species with respect to the different quantitative characters Character 1. — In generally, the number of internodes may be connected with the number of shoots on the same specimen and indirectly with the age of the specimen and shoots. S. media shows the highest value and S. salina the lowest ones (Table 4).