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NAME CHANGES IN STACE’S NEW FLORA OF THE BRITISH ISLES M. N. SANFORD About eighteen years ago, I wrote a short note for White Admiral with this title (Sanford, 1999) covering changes in nomenclature in the British Flora following publication of the 2nd edition of Clive Stace’s Flora of the British Isles (Stace, 1997). Now that the 3rd edition is out (Stace, 2010a), it is time to bring this up to date and review a further round of name changes. Past changes have largely been the result of taxonomic research or in some cases discovery of earlier published names that must take precedence according to the International Code. This time, the changes are a bit more substantial and there has also been considerable alteration of the higher structure of families. The driving force behind these changes has been the advance in molecular systematics. This has enabled the construction of a new phylogeny based on DNA sequencing rather than external features of a plant – ‘a scheme that is expected to endure for centuries to come’. The first two editions of Stace’s Flora had followed the popular classification system of Cronquist. ‘Stace 3’ is the first British Flora to move to the new classification set out by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG, 2009) currently also in its third edition (known as APG III). People are naturally reluctant to adopt a new system, particularly when it means accepting cryptic characters (DNA) over visible ones, but there can be little doubt that the new system, which represents the natural relationships between groups of plants based on their changes through evolution, will soon become the standard that all modern floras follow. Stace has described the impact of molecular systematics on plant classification, particularly in the British Flora, in a useful summary paper for the BSBI journal Watsonia (Stace, 2010). The changes are discussed under four headings: No change here, then (little or no impact) Many of the large, well-known families such as Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Lamiaceae and Poaceae are the same whether defined by molecular or phenetic data. The fact that these families remain largely unchanged is a strong endorsement of the molecular system and it works even in families like Rosaceae where there is a wide variation in the features of flower and fruit morphology. Welcome back old friends (changes that represent reversions to previous classifications) Families such as Liliaceae and Scrophulariaceae have been radically transformed by molecular data, but some of the new groupings are familiar from earlier taxonomic studies. The Liliaceae has been divided into Tofieldiaceae, Nartheciaceae, Melanthiaceae (Paris), Alstroemeriaceae, Colchicaeae, Xanthorrhoeaceae, Alliaceae and Asparagaceae leaving only a few genera in Liliaceae sensu stricto (e.g. Lilium, Fritillaria, Tulipa and Gagea). Equally drastic changes have occurred in the Scrophulariaceae: moving the semi-parasitic genera like Rhinanthus into the Orobanchaceae is not surprising. The split of Veronica, Digitalis, and Linaria etc. into
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Veronicaceae also seems a ‘natural’ grouping. The subsuming of diverse families like Plantaginaceae, Hippuridaceae and Callitrichaceae into the new Veronicaceae feels less comfortable, but it is instructive to note that several beetles and moths are known to use only Linaria and Plantago as their foodplants, perhaps they are able to detect chemical similarities that previous morphological classifications had overlooked. The most notable change in the British Flora is the ‘new’ genus for Lesser Celandine Ficaria split from Ranunculus. Stace points out that this name had originally been proposed by Hudson in the 18th century so technically, though few readers will be familiar with this name, it is a reversion to an earlier opinion. The ‘resurrection’ of taxa like Nasturtium (separated again from Rorippa) and the ‘sinking’ of genera like Lychnis (into Silene), Lycopersicon (into Solanum) and Hebe (into Veronica) should also be fairly easy to accept. A cautious welcome to new friends (changes that seem novel at first but are readily explicable by previously available data) Molecular data did not support the split between Malva and Lavatera (based on fusion of the epicalyx) and the best solution is to subsume Lavatera into Malva. The three species of Peucedanum, formerly classified according to their fruit morphology, are now split into three separate genera with P. palustre moving to the new genus Thyselium. The ‘broad-leaved fescues’ (Festuca pratensis, arundinacea and gigantea) which, unlike other fescues, all hybridise with Lolium, move to a new genus Schedonorus. Unwelcome newcomers (changes that seem unavoidable but which are not supported by exomporphic characters) Changes in the classification of orchids have been less popular, particularly where well-known genera like Orchis have been dismembered with taxa like O. morio moving to Anacamptis and O. ustulata moving to Neotinea. The sinking of Aceras into Orchis makes sense as these formerly separate genera are known to hybridise, but it is harder to accept moving O. morio in Anacamptis as they differ greatly in appearance. Other new names appearing for the first time in Stace 3 and the few included in Ed 2 but excluded from Ed 3, have been listed by Ellis & Pearman (2010). Significant name changes between A Flora of Suffolk (2010) and Stace Ed 3 are listed in the Appendix. A version of this table in a format suitable for pasting into the blank pages at the end of A Flora of Suffolk is available to download from the Flora web page at: http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~sbrc/ Flora.htm References APG (2009). An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III. Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 161: 105–121. Ellis, R. W. & Pearman, D. A. (2010). New names and taxa in the third edition of Stace. BSBI News 115: 3–14.
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Sanford, M. N. (1999). Name changes in Stace’s New Flora of the British Isles. White Admiral 23: 6–7. Sanford, M. N. & Fisk, R. J. (2010). A Flora of Suffolk. Privately published, D. K. & M. N. Sanford, Ipswich. Stace, C. A. (1997). New Flora of the British Isles, 2nd edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Stace, C. A. (2010a). New Flora of the British Isles, 3rd edition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Stace, C. A. (2010b). Classification by molecules: What’s in it for field botanists? Watsonia 28: 103–122.
APPENDIX Suffolk Flora Aconitum × cammarum Aethusa cynapium subsp. cynapioides Althaea hirsuta Alyssum saxatile Anagallis minima Arabis arenosa Arabis glabra Arabis turrita Arenaria serpyllifolia subsp. leptoclados Avena fatua × sativa (A. × marquandii) Carex viridula Carex viridula subsp. brachyrrhyncha Carex viridula subsp. oedocarpa Carex viridula subsp. viridula Centaurea × moncktonii Ceterach officinarum Chenopodium multifidum Chionodoxa forbesii Coronopus didymus Coronopus squamatus Dahlia × cultorum Dryopteris affinis Dryopteris affinis subsp. affinis Dryopteris affinis subsp. borreri Dryopteris affinis subsp. cambrensis Dryopteris × complexa Duchesnea indica Erigeron acer Euphorbia serrulata Euphrasia anglica
Stace 3rd Edition Name A. × stoerkianum A. cynapium subsp. elata Malva setigera Aurinia saxatilis Centunculus minimus Arabidopsis arenosa Turritis glabra Pseudoturritis turrita A. leptoclados A. × hybrida C. viridula s.l. C. lepidocarpa C. demissa C. oederi C. × gerstlaueri Asplenium ceterach Dysphania multifida Scilla forbesii Lepidium didymum Lepidium coronopus D. × hortensis D. affinis agg. D. affinis D. borreri D. cambrensis D. × complexa agg. Potentilla indica E. acris E. stricta E. officinalis subsp. anglica
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Suffolk Flora Festuca arundinacea Festuca gigantea Festuca pratensis Festuca × aschersoniana Fumaria muralis subsp. boraei Galium mollugo Gymnadenia conopsea Gymnadenia conopsea subsp. conopsea Gymnadenia conopsea subsp. densiflora Hebe × franciscana Hebe × lewisii Hedera helix subsp. hibernica Helictotrichon pratense Helictotrichon pubescens Heracleum sphondylium subsp. sibiricum Juncus ambiguus Lavatera arborea Lavatera trimestris Lavatera × clementii Leontodon autumnalis Listera ovata Lychnis chalcedonica Lychnis coronaria Lychnis flos-cuculi Lycopersicon esculentum Matricaria recutita Medicago sativa subsp. varia Monotropa hypopitys Narcissus pseudonarcissus subsp. major Narcissus pseudonarcissus subsp. pseudonarcissus Oenothera cambrica Oenothera perangusta Ornithogalum angustifolium Orobanche minor var. flava Orobanche minor var. maritima Orobanche minor var. minor Papaver dubium Papaver dubium subsp. dubium Papaver dubium subsp. lecoqii
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Stace 3rd Edition Name Schedonorus arundinaceus Schedonorus giganteus Schedonorus pratensis Schedonorus × aschersonianus F. muralis subsp. boroei G. album G. conopsea s.l. G. conopsea G. densiflora Veronica × franciscana Veronica × lewisii H. hibernica Avenula pratensis Avenula pubescens H. sphondylium subsp. flavescens J. ranarius Malva arborea Malva trimestris Malva × clementii Scorzoneroides autumnalis Neottia ovata Silene chalcedonica Silene coronaria Silene flos-cuculi Solanum lycopersicum M. chamomilla M. sativa nothosubsp. varia Hypopitys monotropa N. hispanicus N. pseudonarcissus sunk into O. biennis O. oakesiana O. umbellatum subsp. campestre O. minor subsp. minor var. flava O. minor subsp. maritima O. minor subsp. minor P. dubium s.l. P. dubium P. lecoqii
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APPENDIX Continued Suffolk Flora Parthenocissus inserta Peucedanum palustre Phyllitis scolopendrium Picris echioides Poa pratensis subsp. angustifolia Potentilla palustris Psoralea americana Ranunculus ficaria Ranunculus ficaria subsp. bulbilifer Ranunculus ficaria subsp. chrysocephalus Ranunculus ficaria subsp. ficaria Ranunculus ficaria subsp. ficariiformis Rheum × hybridum Rorippa microphylla Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum Rorippa × sterilis Rumex × lingulatus Sagina apetala subsp. erecta Salicornia nitens Salsola kali subsp. iberica Sanguisorba minor Sanguisorba minor Sanguisorba minor subsp. minor Sanguisorba minor subsp. muricata Senecio fluviatilis Seriphidium maritimum Stachys officinalis Thlaspi perfoliatum Triglochin maritimum Triglochin palustre Ulex europaeus × gallii × Festulolium braunii × Festulolium loliaceum
Stace 3rd Edition Name P. vitacea Thyselium palustre Asplenium scolopendrium Helminthotheca echioides P. angustifolia Comarum palustre Cullen americanum Ficaria verna Ficaria verna subsp. verna Ficaria verna subsp. chrysocephalus Ficaria verna subsp. fertilis Ficaria verna subsp. ficariiformis R. × rhabarbarum Nasturtium microphyllum Nasturtium officinale Nasturtium × sterile R. × weberi S. filicaulis S. emerici S. kali subsp. tragus Poterium sanguisorba Poterium sanguisorba Poterium sanguisorba subsp. sanguisorba Poterium sanguisorba subsp. balearicum S. sarracenicus Artemisia maritima Betonica officinalis Microthlaspi perfoliatum T. maritima T. palustris U. × breoganii × Schedolium braunii × Schedolium loliaceum
Martin Sanford SBRC, Ipswich Museum, High Street, Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 3QH
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