S.AfrJ.Bot., 1993, 59(4) 455 Short Communications I Kart Mededelings Forest site. These plants, four of which are in private possession and one in the Old Fort Garden in Durban, appear closely similar to, but not identical to, the plants from Ngoye. Morphometric analysis of vegetative Individual representative whole-leaf samples were collect characters of Encephalartos woodii, E. ed in December 1992 from 5 specimens of E. woodii at the natalensis and an apparent intermediate Durban Botanic Gardens, from 5 specimens of E. natalensis Dyer & Verdoorn of known origin in a private collection in Durban, and from each of the 5 specimens thought to have R. Osborne* and R.T. Paschke their origin in the Krantzkloof area. Voucher specimens Department of Chemistry, University of Natal, King George V (Osborne 2004 - 2020) are filed at the Herbaria of the Avenue, Durban, 4001 Republic of South Africa University of Natal, Durban, and the University of Durban Westville, Durban. After careful inspection, 13 quantifiable Received 15 January 1993; revised 11 March 1993 characters were selected for assessment (Table 1). Leaflet Morphometric analyses were made on quantifiable leaf and measurements were made on ten median leaflets and aver leaflet characters of 5 specimens each of Encephalartos aged. Primary data were standardized and subjected to woodii Sander, E. natalensis Dyer & Verdoorn and of an principal-component analysis using the STAND, SIMINT, apparent intermediate believed to have originated in the EIGEN and PROJ routines of NT-SYS.pc (Rohlf et al. 1971). Krantzkloof Nature Reserve near Durban. Principal Results of these analyses are shown in ordination diagrams component analyses showed the Krantzkloof plants to be of the first (x-axis) and second (y-axis) components (Figure intermediate between the two species. la) and the first (x-axis) and third (y-axis) components (Figure Ib). The first component accounts for 44% of the Morfometriese analises is gedoen op kantifiseerbare blaar variation and is influenced mainly by leaflet number, inser en pinnakenmerke van 5 eksemplare elk van Encephalartos tion angle, width, area, position of maximum width and woodii Sander, E. natalensis Dyer & Verdoorn en van 'n klaarblyklike oorgangsvorm vermoedelik afkomstig van die leaflet shape index. The second component, accounting for Krantzkloof Natuurreservaat naby Durban. Hoofkomponent 20% of the variation, comprises mainly the effect of inter analises het getoon dat die Krantzkloof plante intermedier leaflet distance and leaflet symmetry. The third component tussen die twee spesies is. accounts for 15% of the variation and results chiefly from leaf length and leaflet length/width ratio data. Keywords: Encephalartos, Zamiaceae, Cycadales, morpho The diagrams show clearly that, in terms of the vegetative metric analysis. characters used in this analysis, the Krantzkloof plants are intermediate between the two known species. A casual • To whom correspondence should be addressed. inspection of the cones over the past five years has indicated that the reproductive characters of these plants may be The account (Dyer 1965) of the discovery in 1895 by John closer to E. woodii than to E. natalensis (Osborne 1993b), Medley Wood of Encephalartos woodii Sander (Zamiaceae, but the use of these characters in morphometric studies was Cycadales), as a single multi-trunked male specimen in the prohibited by the non-availability of cone material from all Ngoye Forest, KwaZulu (28°51'S, 31 0 45'E), initiated the specimens. In order to examine more closely the true genetic popular belief that this plant is amongst the rarest in the status of the Krantzkloof plants, it is planned to carry out a world. The report relates how this specimen was removed restriction fragment length polymorphic analysis using from habitat in the form of several large trunks and basal chloroplast DNA. It is significant that this technique has offsets between 1903 and 1916 - the major trunks thriving recently been used by Italian workers to distinguish between to this day as particularly impressive feature plants in the E. natalensis and E. woodii (Moretti & Norstog 1992). Durban Botanic Gardens (Osborne 1986). Despite intermit Furthermore, useful information may arise from a proposed tent searches in the Ngoye Forest and its surroundings, no anatomical investigation of the specimens. We conclude other plant of this species was ever located and the species is technically described as extinct (Lucas & Synge 1978). Table 1 Schedule of characters used in this study It is fortunate that the original material re-established well in cultivation and that vegetative propagation from basal Leaf length suckers and lateral branches has allowed plants of this clone 2 Number of leaflets to be made available to selected botanical gardens and 3 Mean interleaflet distance 4 Mean leaflet length private collectors. The 1991 - 1992 World Cycad Census 5 Mean leaflet width (Osborne 1993a) lists 37 mature E. woodii specimens in 6 Mean leaflet area cultivation in six countries (South Africa, Zimbabwe, 7 Mean leaflet length/width ratio England, France, Italy and the USA). Of this number, 32 are 8 Mean leaflet position of maximum width accounted for as originating directly or indirectly from the 9 Mean leaflet shape index (Hill 1980) Ngoye stock. The remaining 5 plants, all mature male speci 10 Mean leaflet percentage symmetry (relative areas about a con mens in cultivation in the greater Durban area, could not be structed longitudinal axis) ascribed to the Ngoye clone, but discussions with their 11 Mean angle (transverse view) between opposing leaflets present owners indicated that these plants had their origin in 12 Mean angle (planar view) between the leaflet longitudinal axis the Krantzkloof Nature Reserve near Durban (29°45'S, and the leaf rachis 13 Mean angle of insertion of the leaflet onto the rachis 300 52'E), and some 180 km in distance from the Ngoye 456 S.-Afr.Tydskr.Plantk., 1993, 59(4)
0.8 (a)
0.6 E. natalensis 0.4 .2017
0.2 • 2020 .2012
0+-----~------r-~~~------r------~~--~~------_1
.2013 ·0.2
·0.4 .2016
-0.6 E. sp. 'Krantzkloof' -0.8
2014 -1+------,------,------,------,------_1 ·1 ·0.5 o 0.5 1.5
0.8 (b)
0.6
.2020 0.4
.2017 0.2 .2007
0
-0.2 E. woodii ·0.4 'rro" E. natalensis .2009 -0.6 .2012
-0.8
-1 -1 -0.5 0 0.5 1.5 Figure 1 Ordination diagrams of the principal-component analysis: (a) for the first two components, and (b) for the fIrst and third components. Nos. 2004 - 2008, Encephalartos woodii (Durban Botanic Gardens, ex Ngoye For~st); Nos. 2009 - 2013, E. sp. from the Krantzkloofarea; Nos. 2014, 2016,2017,2019 and 2020, E. natalensisofknown origin. with the speculation that the Krantzkloof plants either MORETTI, A. & NORSTOG, K. 1992. Eredita' uniparentale dei represent a second population of E. woodii or that these plastidi in Encephalartos Lehm. (Zamiaceae, Cycadales). G. plants have experienced a significant genetic contribution Bot. Ital. 126: 15. from that species. OSBORNE, R. 1986. Focus on ... Encephalartos woodii. Encephalartos (Journal of the Cycad Society of South Africa) 5: 4 - 10. References OSBORNE, R. 1993a. The World Cycad Census. Proc. CYCAD 93, DYER, RA 1965. The cycads of southern Africa Bothalia 8: 405 - Third Int Conf. on Cycad BioI., Pretoria, July 1993 (in pr~.) . 515. OSBORNE, R. 1993b. The other Woodii's. Veld & Flora (in HILL, R.S . 1980. A numerical taxonomic approach to the study of print). angiosperm leaves. Bot. Gaz . 141 : 213 - 229. ROHLF, Fl., KISHPAUGH, J. & KIRK, D. 1971. NT-SYS. LUCAS, G.L. & SYNGE, H. 1978. The mCN Plant Red Data Numerical taxonomy system of multivariate statistical pro Book. Threatened Plants Committee, Royal Botanic Gardens, grammes. Tech. R~. State Univ. of New York, Stony Brook, Kew, England. New York, USA.