Bio-systematic treatment of Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medik. in Egypt

The morphological investigation of Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medik (Brassicaceae) in Egypt showed the presence of three morphotypes: Lobed "L" with lobed basal leaves; Simple "S" with simple basal leaves; and Lobed-Simple "LS" with both lobed and simple basal leaves on the same individual. Significant infra-specific diversity in pollen grains characters between the three morphotypes was observed regarding size, apertures and exine ornamentation. The three morphotypes recorded three different chromosome numbers, therefore they are treated as distinct genotypes: Lobed with 2n=2x=16; Simple with 2n=3x=24; Lobed-Simple with 2n=4x=32. Neighbor-joining dendrogram based on cpSSR locus ATCP31017 sequencing separated them into three distinctive clades.