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Variation of anatomical characters is crucial in the recognition of ecological adaptability, especially in Pinus. Pinus caribaea var. caribaea is an endemic taxon of Western Cuba that grows in pure populations or sympatry with Pinus tropicalis and occupies a great variety of ecotopes that are also distinguished by the characteristics of the edatope. The objective of this research is to determine the anatomical variation of the needles as an adaptive differential response to the environmental conditions determined by lithology, altitude and slope. From 20 to 30 individuals from all the ecotopes where the taxon grows naturally were sampled. Cross sections were made of 10 needles from each tree and 12 anatomical variables, related to water regulation, transport and storage of metabolites, were assessed. The results of the statistical analysis revealed significant differences between ecotopes. The principal component analysis showed a relationship between anatomical variables that follow a functional pattern of water regulation and assimilation. The cluster and discriminant analysis made possible to distinguish the formation of groups by the relationship of the anatomical variables, mainly due to the effect of lithology, and those that contributed the most to differentiate them were those of water regulation, primary metabolism together with cuticle thickness. The results are a contribution to the local conservation of the taxon since the structure of the anatomical variation is a consequence of the genetic evolution of the populations and are very important in ecological and for silvicultural management. Citation: Geada-López, G., Sotolongo-Sospedra, R., Pérez-del Valle, L. & Ramírez-Hernández, R. 2021. Diferenciación anatómica foliar en poblaciones naturales de Pinus caribaea var. caribaea (Pinaceae) en Pinar del Río y Artemisa, Cuba. Revista Jard. Bot. Nac. Univ. Habana 42: 175-188. Received: 23 March 2021. Accepted: 13 May 2020. Online: 21 July 2021. Editor: José Angel García-Beltrán.

Variations in needle anatomy can be an adaptative or acclimatization response to the edaphoclimatic stress among population, particularly in those facing extreme environments. Pinus caribaea var. caribaea and P. tropicalis are distributed in western Cuba, mainly in Pinar del Río province, forming pure stands or in sympatric populations. The aim of this study is to compare distinctive anatomy characteristics of the needle of both taxa in the localities where they are sympatrically associated. Cross sections of the needles were done and 14 anatomical variables are assessed. The statistical analyses clearly differentiate both taxa, concluding that each have their own variations to adapt to the same environment. The principal component analysis showed that the populations of each taxon segregate according to the edatope where they grow. For P. caribaea var. caribaea the anatomical variables that most contributed the variation and classification were: the number of stomata, thickness and number of band of cells of the hypodermis; in P. tropicalis it was the thickness of the cuticle and the chlorophyllic parenchyma, and for each taxon the type of resin canal was unequivocally endonal and marginal. Citation: Pérez-del Valle, L., Geada-López, G. & Sotolongo-Sospedra, R. 2020. Anatomía foliar comparada de Pinus caribaea var. caribaea y P. tropicalis (Pinaceae) en asociación simpátrica. Revista Jard. Bot. Nac. Univ. Habana 41: 163-174. Article history: Received: 14 July 2020. Accepted: 30 September 2020. Online: 28 December 2020. Editor: José Angel García-Beltrán.

This study aimed to evaluate the photosynthetic responses of Pinus caribaea Morelet var. caribaea Barret & Golfari and Pinus tropicalis Morelet in the ecological conditions of Pinar del Rio, Cuba. Data were collected in March 2015 using an open system IRGA-porometer LI-6400. The response of both species was measured by increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide and photosynthetically active radiation. Results indicated that under the same environmental conditions, P. caribaea var. caribaea is more productive than P. tropicalis, since P. caribaea var. caribaea, showed higher values of net CO2 assimilation and reaching the CO2 compensation point at 77 μmol mol-1, against the 113 μmol mol-1 registered by P. tropicalis. The species P. caribaea var. caribaea reached light saturation at lower values than P. tropicalis, and showed greater efficiency for the carboxylation of Rubisco. The results indicated that both species perform C3 photosynthetic mechanism.

Functional diversity has emerged as a relevant aspect in the ecosystem studies; several indexes have been used for its evaluation. However, these indexes have not considered the functional redundancy among species, even when its implication in forest resilience facing natural and anthropogenic disturbances have been recognized. In this study an index for functional diversity, considering functional redundancy, is proposed and applied to know changes in functional diversity types according to its disturbance responses, in sites under different disturbance levels, in a microphyll semi-deciduous forest. The probability theory was used to derive a functional biodiversity index from the Simpson biodiversity index. The sensitivity of the index in relation to changes in the individual, species and functional type number was analyzed and compared with other indexes proposed in literature. The less functional diversity value was found in highly disturbed sites, and the highest value in the less disturbed sites. Results confirmed that in less disturbed sites, individuals were more uniformly distributed inside the species and these inside the functional types, than those individuals found in highly disturbed areas; it confers the system a superior functional redundancy. It is concluded that the proposed index is, besides, a good reference of the resilience in a forest ecosystem, and the forest management oriented to keep the functional diversity, as it is interpreted, is a guaranty for the conservation of the forest resilience and integrity.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the water response of Talipariti elatum cultivated in different substrates. Sugarcane straw, peat, biochar and mixtures of sugarcane straw and biochar, and peat and biochar were used. The physical properties of each substrate and the water parameters of the species were determined based on the pressure-volume curve. The osmotic potential at maximum saturation and the turgor loss point presented a similar behaviour with a decreasing tendency. We found significant differences between the beginning and end of the period. The values ranged from -1.17MPa to -1.36MPa and -1.49MPa to -1.74MPa, which indicated the development of osmotic adjustment mechanisms. The modulus of elasticity values ranged between 8.10MPa and 11.20MPa at the start and between 6.65MPa and 9.39MPa at the end, indicating elastic adjustment. The plants in the substrates with lower moisture retention showed lower values of solute potentials and cell wall elasticity modulus.

Como consecuencia de las perturbaciones antrópicas producidas en el bosque semideciduo micrófilo de la Reserva Ecológica Siboney Juticí se produjeron cambios en la cobertura vegetal de sus ecotopos. Futuras acciones de restauración de las áreas antropizadas exigirían conocer el rol funcional de las especies durante los procesos postperturbación. En el trabajo se evaluó el nivel de las perturbaciones en diferentes sitios, considerando las fuentes y características de estas. Para la determinación de los tipos funcionales se analizaron la abundancia relativa de las especies en sitios desigualmente perturbados, los rasgos funcionales de estas (demanda de luz o tolerancia a la sombra, tipo de fruto, dispersión de las semillas) y se realizó un análisis de cluster. Se diferenciaron tres tipos funcionales de respuesta a las perturbaciones a los que se les denominaron: cobertoras, colonizadoras y estabilizadoras. Al interior de cada tipo funcional se diferenció un grupo de especies que condicionan la dinámica postperturbación y propician el avance de la recuperación (especies dinamogenéticas) mientras que otro grupo (diversificadoras) le confiere diversidad, redundancia y resiliencia al sistema. La redundancia de las especies dentro de los tipos funcionales definidos, aunque con diferencia en la composición y abundancia de las estas, les permite estar presentes y desempeñar su función en cualquiera de los niveles de perturbación, por lo que constituyen una poderosa herramienta para el desarrollo de estrategias de restauración ecológica en ese bosque.

Los bosques naturales de Pinus tropicalis Morelet en Cuba han sido alterados por prácticas inadecuadas de aprovechamiento forestal. Esta investigación tiene el objetivo de caracterizar la estructura de un bosque perturbado de Pinus tropicalis en Galalón, Pinar del Río. Para ello se realizó un inventario florístico, se determinaron los índices de valor de importancia ecológica y de importancia ecológica ampliado. Se calculó la diversidad alfa mediante el recíproco del índice de Simpson (1/D) y el índice de Jackknife, así como la diversidad beta por medio de Morisita-Horn y Jaccard. Se evaluó el grado de perturbación del área mediante indicadores de cambios en el ecosistema. Se identificaron un total 22 familias, 30 géneros y 31 especies. Los parámetros estructurales indicaron que las especies de mayor importancia ecológica son P. tropicalis , P. caribaea var. caribaea y Byrsonima crassifolia . La diversidad florística se calificó de baja y la similitud resultó en tres grupos diferenciados por su composición florística.

RESUMEN La micropropagación de Psidium salutare se logró a partir del cultivo de explantes nodales, en el medio Murashige y Skoog (1962) (MS) suplementado con 6-bencilaminopurina (BAP) solo o en combinación con ácido indol 3-acético (AIA). La mejor tasa de multiplicación se obtuvo en presencia de BAP 1.0 mg/L y AIA 0.1 mg/L con un promedio de 4 - 6 brotes por explante después de seis semanas en cultivo. El enraizamiento se logró cultivando los brotes por separado en el medio Lloyd Mc Cown (1981) (WPM) a la mitad de la concentración de las sales, sacarosa 1.5%, carbón activado 1 g/L y ácido naphtalenacético (ANA) 0.2 mg/L solo o en combinación con ácido indolbutírico (AIB) 0.2 mg/L. Las plantas regeneradas “in vitro” fueron adaptadas en suelo lográndose un 75% de sobrevivencia. Palabras clave: Psidium salutare, Myrtaceae, cultivo in vitro, micropropagación ABSTRACT The micropropagation of Psidium salutare was achieved by culturing nodals explants in MS medium (Murashige and Skoog, 1962) supplemented with 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) alone or in combination with indol 3-acetic acid (AIA). Multiples shoots were induced, achieving the best rate of multiplication with BAP 1.0 mg/L and AIA 0.1mg/L. In this medium 4-8 shoot developed for explants after 6 weeks of culturing. The rooting occurred subculturing the excised shoot in medium with ½ strength Lloy Mc Cown (1981) (WPM) salts, sucrose 1.5%, activated charcoal 1g/L., naphtalenacetic acid (ANA) 0.2 mg/L alone or combination with indolbutyric acid (AIB) 0.2 mg/L. Regenerated plants were sucessfully established on soil obtaining a 75% of survival. Key words: Psidium salutare, Myrtaceae, in vitro culture, micropropagation

Resumen Se muestrearon 100 parcelas de 20 x 20 m en el bosque seco de la provincia de Loja, Ecuador, para determinar los tipos de bosque en funcion de la composicion floristica y abundancia de las especies. Se realizo el analisis de conglomerados jerarquico mediante la medida de distancia de Sorensen para tipificar cada tipo de bosque; se calculo el indice de Sorensen cualitativo y cuantitativo. El estado de conservacion se determino utilizando matrices de calificacion que consideran seis variables: estructura del bosque, manejo y aprovechamiento, poblacion asociada, matriz del entorno, presencia de fuentes de agua y problematica socioambiental, que son calificadas con base en 26 indicadores, cuyos resultados se expresan en cuatro rangos: 0-25 % (malo), 25,1 a 50 % (regular), 50,1 a 75 % (bueno) y 75,1 a 100 % (muy bueno). Se diferencian tres tipos de bosque seco, indicados por la presencia de Terminalia valverdeae, Simira ecuadorensis, Cordia macrantha (bosque tipo I); Handroanthus chrysanthus, Citharexylum gentryi, Calliandra taxifolia (bosque tipo II), y Eriothecaruizii, Ipomoea pauciflora, Leucaena trichodes y Erythrina velutina (bosque tipo III), los mismos que presentan diferencias notables en el campo, dadas por las especies y caracteristicas estructurales. El bosque, en general, se encuentra en buen estado de conservacion (57,6 %). El bosque I esta en buen estado (67,5 %) con tendencia a muy bueno, el bosque II esta en buen estado de conservacion (57,1%) y el bosque III en buen estado (55,2 %) con tendencia hacia regular. Palabras clave: estado de conservacion, especie indicadora, tipos de bosque, bosque seco. Abstract To determine forest types based on floristic composition and abundance of species, 100 plots of 20 x 20 m were sampled in the dry forest of the province of Loja. The hierarchical cluster analysis was carried out using the Sorensen distance measure to typify each type of forest; Sorensen quantitative and qualitative index was calculated. The conservation status was determined by using matrices of qualification that consider six variables: forest structure, management and use, associated population, environment matrix, presence of water sources and social and environmental problems, which are rated based on 26 indicators, whose results are expressed in four ranges: 0-25 % (bad), 25.1 to 50 % (regular), 50.1 to 75 % (good) and 75.1 to 100 % (very good). There are three types of dry forest, determined by the presence of Terminalia valverdeae, Simira ecuadorensis, Cordia macrantha (forest type I); Handroanthus chrysanthus, Citharexylum gentryi, Calliandra taxifolia (type II forest), and Eriotheca ruizii, Ipomoea pauciflora, Leucaena trichodes and Erythrina velutina (type III forest), which present remarkable differences in the field because of the species and structural characteristics. The forest, in general, is in good conservation status (57.6 %). Forest I is in good condition (67.5 %) with a very good tendency, forest II is in good conservation status (57.1 %) and forest III in good condition (55.2 %) with a tendency towards regular. Keywords: conservation status, indicator species, types of forest, dry forest.

†Background and Aims Four species of Pinus subsection Australes occur in the Caribbean Basin: P. caribaea, P. cubensis, P. maestrensis and P. occidentalis. This study analyses the phylogeography of these species to assess possible colonization events from Central America to the islands and subsequent population expansions during glacial periods driven by both drier climate and larger emerged land areas. †Methods Allele size data were obtained for plastid microsatellites for 314 individuals from 24 populations, covering the distribution range of subsection Australes in the Caribbean Basin. †Key Results In total, 113 plastid haplotypes were identified. The highest genetic diversity was found in populations of P. caribaea. Overall, Caribbean Basin populations fit the isolation by distance model. Significant phylogeographical structure was found (RST ¼ 0.671 . permuted RST ¼ 0.101; P , 0.0001). The haplotype network and a Bayesian analysis of population structure (BAPS) indicated different Central American origins for P. caribaea var. bahamensis and P. caribaea var. caribaea plastids, with Central America populations in northern and south-eastern groups. Sudden expansion times for BAPS clusters were close to three glacial maxima. †Conclusions Central America contains ancestral plastid haplotypes. Population expansion has played a major role in the distribution of genetic diversity in P. caribaea var. hondurensis. Two colonization events gave rise to the P. caribaea var. bahamensis and P. caribaea var. caribaea lineages. Plastid variation in the eastern species (P. cubensis, P. maestrensis and P. occidentalis) evolved independently from that in P. caribaea var. caribaea. Incomplete lineage sorting between P. cubensis and P. maestrensis is apparent. Inferred expansion times for P. caribaea var. bahamensis and for the eastern lineages correspond to glacial maxima, whereas those for P. caribaea var. hondurensis correspond to the beginning of the temperature decrease that led to Marine Isotope Stage 8.

Uncertainties in the age and phylogenetic position of Pinaceae fossils present significant obstacles to our understanding of the timing of diversification in the family. We demonstrate that simultaneous phylogenetic analyses of chloroplast DNA (matK and rbcL) and nonmolecular characters that include both extant genera and a limited number of fossil taxa provide useful hypotheses for calibrating molecular trees. Root placements varied for Pinaceae, with Bayesian analyses recovering mutually monophyletic subfamilies Pinoideae and Abietoideae and parsimony analyses recovering Abietoideae as paraphyletic by placing the root between Cedrus and the remaining genera. The inferred phylogenetic positions of fossil taxa Pityostrobus bernissartensis as the sister group to Pinus and Pseudolarix erensis as the sister group to extant Pseudolarix were used to guide divergence‐time calibrations; these calibrations yielded an Early Cretaceous and an Early Jurassic age for crown‐group Pinaceae, respectively. The older age ...

We used chloroplast DNA sequences from matK and rbcL to infer the phylogeny for 101 of the approximately 111 species of Pinus (Pinaceae). At the level of subsection and above, the cpDNA tree is congruent with phylogenies based on nuclear DNA with one notable exception: cpDNA sequences from subsect. Contortae are sister to all other North American hard pines rather than occupying a more derived position in the same clade. We used the cpDNA tree plus evidence from nuclear ribosomal DNA and morphology to propose a new classification for the genus. The molecular phylogenies are symmetrical at the deepest branches of the genus, allowing for the delineation of two subgenera, each with two sections that form sister groups. Within sections, clades were slightly asymmetric and sometimes ambiguously resolved. To accomodate ambiguity in some interrelationships, avoid the creation of new ranks, and retain traditional names, we recognised up to three monophyletic subsections per section. Subgenus Pinus (the diploxylon, or hard pines) is divided into the predominantly Eurasian and Mediterranean section Pinus, composed of subsections Pinus and Pinaster, and the strictly North American section Trifoliae, composed of subsections Australes, Ponderosae, and Contortae. Subgenus Strobus (the haploxylon, or soft pines) is divided into the strictly North American section Parrya, composed of subsections Cembroides, Nelsoniae, and Balfourianae, and the Eurasian and North American section Quinquefoliae, composed of subsections Gerardianae, Krempfianae, and Strobus. Mapping of ten morphological and distributional characters indicates that two were diagnostic for infrageneric taxa: the number of vascular bundles per leaf distinguishes subgenus Pinus from subgenus Strobus, and a terminal-positioned umbo on the ovulate cone scale is diagnostic of subsect. Strobus.

The study of meat quality, using the autochthonous pig breed from the region of Murcia (Spain) Chato Murciano as the raw material, is the logical consequence of the demand of the participating social sectors, from the producer to the consumer. The recent interest, both public and private, which has been taken in the recovery of this breed means that we can count on a distinguished product, in need of adequate studies which will allow it to compete with other breeds in the market. We have studied a range of qualitative and quantitative parameters of the carcass and meat in 31 animals of the pig breed of an average age of 10 months. Some of the mean results obtained are DFT2 (dorsal fat thickness on the last rib): 3.09±0.68 cm; perimeter of the ham: 73.94±4.37 cm; and length of the ham: 37.16±3.12 cm. The evolution of the pH in the carcass is that of pigs which do not produce PSE (pale, soft, exudative) meat.

Human will and interests have used landscapes without limits for different purposes, usually for the economic benefit of a minority [1]. Nowadays, the Earth is threatened daily by the degradation of its ecosystems due to fragmentation. One of the main consequences is biodi‐ versity loss. Despite the economic progress and conservation actions carried out in many countries, the planet is losing genuine tropical forest, which is distributed mainly in the “low and middle income countries”. The reasons are diverse: inappropriate use of extractive practices in forestry related to wood and non-wood products, land use change when clearing the forest for agriculture and cattle ranching, tourism development, and others. These reasons have facilitated the introduction of new species that then behave as invasive species [2], which usually produce strong competition with local species, reducing biomass and the forest’s productivity.

The plastid DNA sequences of rbcL, matK, the trnV intron, and the rpl20‐rps18 spacer in 38 species of subgenus Pinus, representing all recognized subsections, were analyzed. Combined data sets of 3230 bp were used to assess relationships with maximum parsimony, neighbor joining, and maximum likelihood algorithms. Subgenus Pinus splits into two distinct lineages, corresponding to Eurasia and North America (“New World hard pines”). The Eurasian lineage differentiated into two clades: the Mediterranean pines, including the Himalayan pine P. roxburghii (subsections Canarienses, Halepenses, and Pinaster), and subsection Pinus. Two North American pines, P. tropicalis and P. resinosa, are typical members of subsection Pinus but are not closely related to each other. Subsection Contortae occupied the basal position in the “New World hard pines” followed by subsection Ponderosae. Of the remaining “New World hard pines” subsections, Attenuatae was a monophyletic group and Oocarpae, Australes, and Leiophyllae were p...