THE SPECIES PAIR CONCEPT IN THE LICHEN DENDROGRAPHA-LEUCOPHAEA (ARTHONIALES) - ANALYSES BASED ON ITS SEQUENCES

The internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of the nuclear ribosomal DNA we re sequenced for 16 specimens of the lichen Dendrographa leucophaea (T uck.) Darb. (Roccellaceae) in order to determine whether the sterile a nd fertile specimens within the species (also called a species-pair) f eint two: distinct monophyletic groups. Forty-four informative sites w ere obtained. Phylogenetic trees were calculated from aligned sequence data, using Dendrographa alectoroides Sundin & Tehler as an outgroup. The cladistic analysis produced two most parsimonious trees, from whi ch a consensus tree was calculated. Well supported clades containing b oth sexual and asexual specimens were found in the tree, confirming th e theory that asexual specimens of so-called species-pairs ai-e not mo nophyletic.