Diversidade morfológica e molecular do gênero Bryopsis J. V. Lamouroux (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) no litoral de Pernambuco-Brasil

Abstract

Bryopsis genus has simple morphology and high phenotypic plasticity, making difficult to identify its species based on morphological characteristics. This study aimed to evaluate the diversity of Bryopsis in northeastern Brazil (state of Pernambuco), based on morphological data and, for the first time, using the molecular markers tufA and rbcL. The molecular analyzes were incongruent with the morphology, demonstrating that there are cryptic and polymorphic species for the genus. Of the four taxa cited for the area based only on morphological data (Bryopsis corymbosa, B. pennata, B. plumosa, Bryopsis sp.), only B. pennata was recorded. Our results showed that typical specimens of B. pennata and B. plumosa were grouped with low genetic divergence, 0-0.21% for tufA and no divergence for rbcL, indicating that B. pennata is an extremely plastic species that includes specimens with morphotype "B. plumosa”. Bryopsis pennata var. secunda is cited for the first time for northeastern Brazil, diverging from the typical variety by 0.96-1.57% for tufA and by 0.4% for rbcL. This study showed that a larger sampling of Bryopsis is necessary, in order to confirm the taxonomic status of the species referenced for Brazil, whose phenotypic plasticity may overestimate its diversity or reveal cryptic species.