Ecological, morphological and cytogenetic analysis of Korean martagon Lilium species

A comprehensive evaluation of habitat associations and distribution patterns of four Lilium species in Korea was carried out and data regarding its ecological and morphological characteristics under different regions and environmental conditions were collected. During survey it was observed that the species are well distributed nationwide with highly variable altitudes such as L. tsingtauense (300-700 m), one unknown species (450-800 m), L. hansonii (350-850 m) and L. distichum (750-1,000 m) above sea level. Maximum (~80%) of natural habitats of these species richness were found in the northern slopes of mountains whereas, only (~20%) habitats were present in Southern regions. Morphological studies revealed that each of these species had its own unique morphological characteristics. On the basis of morphological observations such as bulbs, stem, leaves and flowers these four aspecies were clearly differentiated. The 5S rDNA loci were the same in three species, section Martagon lily, which detected on interstitial region of long arm of chromosome #3. As well as, 5S rDNA colocalized with 45S rDNA. A high frequency of variation in number of 45S rDNA loci was detected in L. hansonii. Based on ecological, morphological and cytogenetic analysis, these results could serve information of understanding of evolutionary evidence in Lilium taxa.