Table 1.
Currently accepted species of Sarcocornia (Salicornioideae, Amaranthaceae), their distribution, habitat, growth form and chromosome number
| Species* | Distribution | Habitat | Growth form | Chromosome number (2n) | No of accessions included in this study† | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurasian & North African Sarcocornia | ||||||
| S. alpini (Lag.) Rivas-Martínez | Iberian Peninsula | Middle to high intertidal zones; inland salt pans | Prostrate to erect sub-shrub, sometimes rooting at the nodes | 18 (diploid) | 1 | de la Fuente et al. (2013) |
| S. fruticosa (L.) A.J. Scott | Mediterranean coasts, Atlantic coast of France | Upper tidal and supratidal coastal terraces | Erect shrub | 36, 54, 72 (tetraploid to octoploid) | 6 | Castraviejo (1990), Greuter et al. (1984) |
| S. hispanica Fuente, Rufo & Sánchez-Mata | SE Iberian Peninsula | Saline depressions outside of tidal influence, endorheic lakes, canals of salt works | Erect shrub | 54 (hexaploid) | 2 | de la Fuente et al. (2011) |
| S. perennis (Miller) A.J. Scott | Atlantic coasts of W and S Europe and N Africa, Mediterranean coasts | Intertidal zone of salt marshes | Mat-forming, decumbent sub-shrub, rooting at the nodes | 18 (diploid) | 7 | Davy et al. (2006) |
| S. pruinosa Fuente, Rufo & Sánchez-Mata | Atlantic coasts of France, Spain and Portugal | Intertidal zone of salt marshes | Erect sub-shrub, occasionally rooting at the nodes | 72 (octoploid) | – | de la Fuente et al. (2013) |
| American Sarcocornia | ||||||
| S. ambigua (Michx.) M.A. Alonso & M.B. Crespo | Atlantic coasts of North America, Caribbean coasts | Coastal salt marshes | Prostrate to erect shrub sometimes rooting at the base | – | 10 | Ball (2003), Alonso and Crespo (2008) |
| S. andina (Phil.) Freitag, M.A. Alonso & M.B. Crespo | Atacama Desert in Chile | Saline soils of the high plateaus | Sub-caespitose, cushion-like dwarf shrub, rooting at the nodes | – | 1 | Alonso and Crespo (2008) |
| S. magellanica (Phil.) M.A. Alonso & M.B. Crespo | Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego in Argentina | Coastal salt marshes | Mat-forming, decumbent sub-shrub, rooting at the nodes | – | 3 | Alonso & Crespo (2008) |
| S. neei (Lag.) M.A. Alonso & M.B. Crespo | Pacific Coast of Chile and Peru, through the northern half of Argentina, to the Atlantic coast of Argentina | Saline deserts | Erect shrub | – | 8 | Alonso and Crespo (2008) |
| S. pacifica (Standl.) A.J. Scott | Pacific coast of North America from Alaska to Baja California, inland in southern California and Death Valley bordering the Panamint Lakes | Coastal salt marshes | Prostrate to erect shrub, sometimes rooting at the nodes | – | 22 | Ball (2003) |
| S. pulvinata (R.E. Fr.) A.J. Scott | Altiplano Andino in Peru and Bolivia | Strongly saline soils on the edges of temporary, endorheic salt pans | Pulvinate, in dense tuffs | – | 1 | Alonso and Crespo (2008) |
| S. utahensis (Tidestr.) A.J. Scott | Utah south to Texas and northern Mexico; shores of the Gulf of Mexico from north-eastern Mexico eastwards to Louisiana, with a disjunct location in the Bahamas | Coastal salt marshes and inland saline habitats | Erect to decumbent shrub | – | 3 | Ball (2003) |
| South African Sarcocornia | ||||||
| S. capensis (Moss) A.J. Scott | Western and Eastern Cape of South Africa | Inland salt pans, supratidal terraces in estuarine salt marshes, depressions | Decumbent creeping shrub, rooting at the nodes | – | 8 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. decumbens (Tölken) A.J. Scott | Southern and eastern coasts of South Africa and Mozambique | Coastal and inland salt marshes | Decumbent, often mat-forming sub-shrub, rooting at the nodes | – | 6 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. decussata S. Steffen, Mucina & G. Kadereit | Western Cape of South Africa | Inland quartz patches and adjacent saline alluvia | Erect or spreading shrub | – | 3 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. dunensis (Moss) S. Steffen, Mucina & G. Kadereit | Lüderitz, Namibia | Sandy edges of arid-region saline flats | Decumbent creeping sub-shrub, rooting at the nodes | – | 1 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. freitagii S. Steffen, Mucina & G. Kadereit | West coast of South Africa | Inland salt pans and saline alluvia | Prostrate to decumbent short-lived perennial herb | – | 2 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. littorea (Moss) A.J. Scott | West and South Coasts of South Africa | Coastal cliffs | Erect shrub | – | 5 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. mossambicensis Brenan | Southern Mozambique | Estuarine flats and edges of mangroves | Prostrate to decumbent sub-shrub, mat-forming, rooting at the nodes | – | – | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. mossiana (Tölken) A.J. Scott | Western Cape of South Africa | Inland salt pans and saline alluvia | Spreading shrub | – | 4 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. natalensis (Bunge ex Ung.-Sternb.) A.J. Scott | Atlantic and Indian Ocean coasts of Namibia, South Africa and Mozambique | Wetlands, coastal and inland salt pans and salt marshes | Prostrate to decumbent herb or sub-shrub | – | 16 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. pillansii (Moss) A.J. Scott | South African coasts | Supratidal terraces of coastal salt marshes, inland salt pans and saline alluvia | Erect (sometimes decumbent) shrub | – | 24 (incl. putative hybrids) | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. tegetaria S. Steffen, Mucina & G. Kadereit | Atlantic and Indian Ocean coasts of Namibia, South Africa and Mozambique | Intertidal zones of estuaries | Prostrate to decumbent sub-shrub, mat-forming, rooting at the nodes | – | 10 (incl. putative hybrids) | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. terminalis (Tölken) A.J. Scott‡ | Namaqualand in South Africa | Elevated, saline river alluvia | Erect shrub | – | 4 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| S. xerophila (Tölken) A.J. Scott | Namaqualand in South Africa | Inland quartz patches | Erect shrub | – | 1 | Steffen et al. (2010) |
| Australian Sarcocornia | ||||||
| S. blackiana (Ulbr.) A.J. Scott | Southern and western coasts of Australia, coasts of Tasmania, coasts and inland localities of New Zealand and New Caledonia | Rarely flooded saline habitats | Erect shrub | – | 2 | Wilson (1980, 1984) |
| S. globosa P.G. Wilson | Western Australia | Elevated edges of saline lakes and alluvia | Erect shrub | 18 (diploid) | 1 | Shepherd and Yan (2003), Wilson (1980, 1984) |
| S. quinqueflora (Bunge ex Ung.-Sternb.) A.J. Scott | Eastern, southern and western coasts of Australia, coasts of Tasmania, coasts and inland localities of New Zealand and New Caledonia | Intertidal habitats, supratidal flats, edges of inland salt lakes and pans | Mat-forming, decumbent subshrub | 36 (tetraploid) | 2 | Shepherd and Yan (2003), Wilson (1980, 1984) |
*This compilation does not include subspecies.
†Our assessment for the sampling in this study was based on previous molecular studies, and biogeographical and morphological diversity. The first was only available for Eurasian and North African Sarcocornia (de la Fuente et al., 2013). Detailed molecular studies were not available for the American, South African and Australian species. Therefore, we used more accessions for these regions. In the Americas we had to cover a very large distribution area for Sarcocornia (Alonso and Crespo, 2008) and in South Africa we had to cover very high morphologoical diversity (Steffen et al., 2010).
‡The systematic status of S. terminalis remains unclear. Morphologically it is most similar to S. pillansii (Steffen et al., 2010), although Tölken (1967) states in his original description strong similarities to S. mossiana.