Study on utricle morphological and micro-morphological characters of Carex subgenus Carex in Iran

Carex, the largest genus of Cyperaceae family in the world and Iran, includes four subgenera, of which the subgenus Carex with 68 species in Flora Iranica area and 44 species in Iran is the largest subgenus. Due to morphological similarities between species, this genus is composed of several complex groups. The reproductive structures (inflorescence and flower) in this genus, especially utricle and nut, are of special importance for the identification and delimitation of species. In this research, the utricle characters among Carex species in Iran have been studied. In order to evaluate the morphological and micromorphological characters, herbarium samples were used and the obtained data were analyzed using PAST software Ver. 3.14. Utricle shape (general and transverse view), winged or wingless margin, wall material, the presence of veins and its number, the presence of hair and beak (shape and length) were more important than other characters. Identification key was prepared based on morphological characters for subgenus Carex in Iran. The morphological traits of utricle were useful only at the species level but were not effective at the section level and also the micromorphological traits were not effective at either the species level or the cluster level. Also, cluster analysis based on utricle morphological data did not confirm the conventional classifications of sections in the Flora Iranica and the Flora of Iran, but showed more agreement with phylogenetic results.