Cladistic Analysis of the Genus Porana s. l. (Convolvulaceae)

The genus Porana s. l. was cladistically analyzed based on 33 morphological characters. Using the genus Cordisepalum as out group, 10 eaqually most parsimonious cladograms of Porana were yielded from cladistic analysis. The strict consensus tree showed that Porana s. l. was a natural taxon, and it was consistent with the results on pollen morphology and micromorphology of seed surface. Most taxonomists disagree to divide it into 4 or 5 genera proposed by some taxonomists. In the consensus tree consisted of two paratactic clades, one showed that subg. Porana and subg. Poranopsis have the sister-group relationship, and in the other clade the subg. Tridynamia was resolved as sister to the subg. Dinetus. Further studies are needed before an unambiguous phylogeny is achieved for the broad sense genus.