Major changes to Leptospermeae

Last year, a new paper was published with significant changes for the tribe Leptospermeae at the generic level: Revised taxonomy of the tribe Leptospermeae (Myrtaceae) based on morphological and DNA data by Peter Wilson and Margaret Heslewood. Paper is available here: https://tinyurl.com/3nmpzw95

Pre-paper, and current iNat before the changes I'm about to implement, Leptospermum was a large, fairly broadly circumscribed genus. Post-paper, it is now somewhat split up, with the resurrection of one genus and the erection of three new genera, into which 40+ Leptospermum species have been transferred. All of these changes have now been accepted by POWO, as well as most of Australia's state herbaria (APC is a bit slow to uptake the new names, but it will happen soon), so I am now implementing all of these changes on iNat. The changes are as summarised below, with the current Leptospermum species on iNat indicated on left, and the new combination on right:

Genus resurrected: Leptospermopsis, 8 species
Leptospermum erubescens --> Leptospermopsis erubescens

Leptospermum fastigiatum --> Leptospermopsis fastigiata

Leptospermum incanum --> Leptospermopsis incana

Leptospermum maxwellii --> Leptospermopsis maxwellii

Leptospermum nitens --> Leptospermopsis nitens

Leptospermum oligandrum --> Leptospermopsis oligandra

Leptospermum roei and Leptospermum inelegans --> Leptospermopsis roei

Leptospermum sericeum --> Leptospermopsis sericea

New genus: Aggreflorum, 10 species
Leptospermum anfractum --> Aggreflorum anfractum

Leptospermum benwellii --> Aggreflorum benwellii

Leptospermum brachyandrum --> Aggreflorum brachyandrum

Leptospermum whitei --> Aggreflorum ellipticum
Leptospermum madidum --> Aggreflorum longifolium (with subsp. longifolium and sativum)

Leptospermum luehmannii --> Aggreflorum luehmannii

Leptospermum pallidum --> Aggreflorum pallidum
Leptospermum parviflorum [not in iNat] --> Aggreflorum parviflorum

Leptospermum purpurascens --> Aggreflorum purpurascens

Leptospermum speciosum --> Aggreflorum speciosum

New genus: Apectospermum, 4 species
Leptospermum exsertum --> Apectospermum exsertum

Leptospermum macgillivrayi --> Apectospermum macgillivrayi

Leptospermum spinescens --> Apectospermum spinescens

Leptospermum subtenue --> Apectospermum subtenue

New genus: Gaudium, 22 species
Leptospermum blakelyi --> Gaudium blakelyi

Leptospermum brevipes --> Gaudium brevipes

Leptospermum confertum --> Gaudium confertum

Leptospermum coriaceum --> Gaudium coriaceum

Leptospermum deanei --> Gaudium deanei

Leptospermum divaricatum --> Gaudium divaricatum

Leptospermum glaucescens --> Gaudium glaucescens

Leptospermum jingera --> Gaudium jingera

Leptospermum laevigatum --> Gaudium laevigatum

Leptospermum lamellatum --> Gaudium lamellatum
Leptospermum microcarpum --> Gaudium microcarpum

Leptospermum multicaule --> Gaudium multicaule

Leptospermum myrsinoides --> Gaudium myrsinoides

Leptospermum namadgiense --> Gaudium namadgiense

Leptospermum neglectum --> Gaudium neglectum

Leptospermum parvifolium --> Gaudium parvifolium

Leptospermum polyanthum --> Gaudium polyanthum

Leptospermum semibaccatum --> Gaudium semibaccatum

Leptospermum sericatum --> Gaudium sericatum

Leptospermum subglabratum --> Gaudium subglabratum

Leptospermum trinervium --> Gaudium trinervium

Leptospermum venustum --> Gaudium venustum

I have already added all 45 of these new taxa to iNat, and will do one-to-one swaps for each. Some important comments:

1. Although most Leptospermum sensu latu are endemic to Australia, there are a few species native to other countries (New Zealand and a number of countries spanning southeast Asia from Myanmar down to PNG). Almost all of these species are retained in Leptospermum. The only one transferred to a new genus is parviflorum, which is now in Aggreflorum; it is distributed across both northern Australia and into New Guinea.

2. There are a small handful of Australian species that are now widely naturalised in a number of countries/regions (South Africa, NZ, Hawaii, California, Madeira, Azores, St Helena, etc). The two major cases here are Leptospermum scoparium and laevigatum.
   scoparium is retained in Leptospermum, but laevigatum is now in Gaudium.

3. Perhaps the most important comment here for people to note. There are six regions where, under the new taxonomy, at least two of the now five genera co-occur, including both native and non-native taxa. These regions are:
   Australia
   New Zealand
   South Africa
   Hawaii
   Kenya
   California

For all six, both Leptospermum and Gaudium are expected to occur; for Australia this is all native species, NZ a mix of native and non-native, and the others due to the presence of both Leptospermum scoparium and Gaudium laevigatum as naturalised species

For these six places, any observation currently IDed only as genus Leptospermum will be rolled back to tribe Leptospermeae, as per this taxon swap I have drafted: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxon_changes/142569. These observations will then have to be revisited to see whether they need to be IDed as Leptospermum (scoparium) or Gaudium (laevigatum) [or another, newly naturalised species, or something cultivated that hasn't been marked as such]. For regions where only one genus is expected to occur, eg the Azores, Madeira, UK, any observations currently IDed to genus Leptospermum will not be changed.

Here is the generic key from the paper:

Tagging top IDers and observers of Leptospermum from each region to solicit any feedback. If no issues with the above, I will implement these changes on Monday (Sydney time).

@kaipatiki_naturewatch @pjd1 @john_barkla @christopherstephens @jennysaito @lloyd_esler @david_lyttle @mark_smale @majo00 @murray_dawson @iancastle @bean_ar @zaf2103 @m_chasse @kevinfaccenda @daverichardson @tonyrebelo @jeremygilmore @sandraf @sedgesrock @daverichardson @rkct @geoffnichols @dewidine @j_orfao @teresa_jardim @miwi2020 @vitorjcj @davidsando @reiner

@gregtasney @cobaltducks @nicklambert @flipperg @saltmarshsteve @kjellknable @insiderelic @margaretjb @aavankampen @scottwgavins @alan_dandie @mftasp @jggbrown @michaelcincotta @bushbandit @quinkin @jackiemiles @beth393 @margl

please feel free to tag anyone I've missed or that you think would be interested

Publicado el 19 de abril de 2024 a las 11:18 AM por thebeachcomber