A new species of Marsupella sect. Ustulatae Müll. Frib. ex R.M. Schust. is described following an integrated morphological and molecular-phylogenetic study which examined the recently found dioicous plants growing epilithically on acidic substrates in several mountain ranges of Portugal between Peneda-Gerês in the north and Serra da Monchique in the extreme south. Employed molecular markers (plastid trnF-trnT region and nuclear ribosomal ITS) confirmed the distinctness of the lineage from other currently recognized species in the section, and furthermore, previously neglected diversity within M. sprucei (Limpr.) Bernet was signaled. Although not yet confirmed outside Portugal, the newly reported species is probably not rare in the region and has likely been overlooked as M. funckii (F. Weber & D. Mohr) Dumort. or M. profunda Lindb. in the past.

• Keywords
• European liverwort endemic, ITS, Marsupella, Portugal, integrative taxonomy, trnF–trnT,
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH

The recent molecular phylogenetic study of the families Aongstroemiaceae and Dicranellaceae, which resolved the genera Aongstroemia and Dicranella as polyphyletic, indicated the need for changes in their circumscription and provided new morphological evidence to support the formal description of newly recognized lineages. Following up on these results, the present study adds another molecular marker, the highly informative trnK-psbA region, to a subset of previously analyzed taxa and presents molecular data from newly analyzed austral representatives of Dicranella and collections of Dicranella-like plants from North Asia. The molecular data are linked with morphological traits, particularly the leaf shape, tuber morphology, and capsule and peristome characters. Based on this multi-proxy evidence, we propose three new families (Dicranellopsidaceae, Rhizogemmaceae, and Ruficaulaceae) and six new genera (Bryopalisotia, Calcidicranella, Dicranellopsis, Protoaongstroemia, Rhizogemma, and Ruficaulis) to accommodate the described species according to the revealed phylogenetic affinities. Additionally, we amend the circumscriptions of the families Aongstroemiaceae and Dicranellaceae, as well as the genera Aongstroemia and Dicranella. In addition to the monotypic Protoaongstroemia that contains the newly described dicranelloid plant with a 2-3-layered distal leaf portion from Pacific Russia, P. sachalinensis, Dicranella thermalis is described for a D. heteromalla-like plant from the same region. Fourteen new combinations, including one new status change, are proposed.

• Keywords
• Haplolepidous mosses, biodiversity, morphological convergence, nad5 G1 intron, phylogenetics, polyphyly, trnK, trnS-trnF region,
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH