Morphological differences and chromosome numbers in Puccinellia distans and P. limosa populations from Central Europe

Twenty five populations of Puccinellia from Czech Republic (Bohemia and Moravia), Slovakia and Hungary were examined to verify the exact distribution of P. distans and P. limosa in south Moravia and south Slovakia. Determination of the studied species was based on morphometric analysis (PCA and discriminant analysis). Chromosome numbers were counted in each population. Morphometric analysis divided Puccinellia populations into two groups. Populations from Bohemia and Moravia correspond to P. distans while those from Slovakia and Hungary correspond to P. limosa. Exterior palea length and anther length are the best characters for calculation of a simple discriminant function to distinguish between the investigated species. The distribution pattern found corresponds well to the results of the determination of older herbarium material from the studied localities. Two ploidy levels were ascertained in the studied populations, i.e. (i) all plants of P. distans and those of P. limosa from Slovakia and western part of Hungary were hexaploids (2n = 42), while (ii) P. limosa from the eastern part of Hungary were tetraploids (2n = 28). Morphological differences between both cytotypes of P. limosa were tested.