CORRELATION BETWEEN GENERATED MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTER DATA AND FLAVONOID CONTENT OF SPECIES IN THE MUHLENBERGIA-MONTANA COMPLEX

Taxonomic descriptions in English and Spanish and a key to 16 closely related species of Muhlenbergia montana (Nutt.) Hitchc. complex were g enerated by means of DELTA computer programs, using data gathered from a morphological character list. Data from chromatographic analyses of the flavonoid content of 14 species were recorded in DELTA format and analyzed separately. Both data sets when analyzed independently, and together they suggest that Muhlenbergia virescens (H.B.K.) Kunth is an cestral with other species evolving from it in specific geographic reg ions. The data provided a basis for clearly separating the annual spec ies (Muhlenbergia crispiseta and Muhlenbergia peruviana) from the pere nnial species in this complex. A phenetic comparison of the morphologi cal and chemical features suggests a different rate of divergence for chemical and morphological characters among species in this closely re lated group of taxa.