SARCOBATACEAE - A NEW FAMILY OF CARYOPHYLLALES

A review of the discovery and early descriptions of Sarcobatus as well as of its taxonomic history is presented. Studies of the form and siz e of sieve-element plastids in the order Calyophyllales reveal signifi cant differences between Sarcobatus (so far in Chenopodiaceae) and the majority of the Chenopodiaceae/Amaranthaceae clade (i.e., suborder Ch enopodiineae). The presence of P3cf-form sieve-element plastids and co ncomitant absence of chenopod-specific P3f-form plastids reinforce oth er evidence, in particular from chloroplast DNA sequencing, to make ap pear Sarcobatus quite distinct from the Chenopodiineae clade and sugge st that its proper place is in the vicinity of the Phytolaccaceae and Nyctaginaceae. Therefore, Sarcobatus is segregated as a new family, Sa rcobataceae.