A numerical taxonomic investigation of the Hordeum brevisubulatum aggregate

Abstract

Measurements of 21 morphometric characters were carried out on 317 specimens; additional observations were made in the field in Turkey, Iran, and the People's Republic of China. Using two nonparametric clustering algorithms and various discriminant analyses followed by bootstrap validation, we infer that the following morphological species are worthy of recognition: Hordeum bogdanii; Hordeum brevisubulatum, including ssp. brevisubulatum and ssp. violaceum; Hordeum turkestanicum; and Hordeum roshevtzii. We found that H. roshevtzii is very close to H. brevisubulatum. A key to species and subspecies is provided along with comments on habitats, distribution, and synonymy. Key words: numerical taxonomy, Hordeum turkestanicum, Hordeum brevisubulatum, Hordeum roshevitzii, Hordeum bogdanii, key to species.