Edaphic isolation as a driver of divergence in a new Amazonian species of Diclinanona (Annonaceae)

For many years a mysterious collection made during an expedition to Venezuelan Amazonia in 1992 was in a folder at the former Utrecht Herbarium as “unidentified Annonaceae”. Several different genera were suggested for identification but since flowers were lacking it was unclear where this taxon should be placed. One of the suggestions based on seed morphology was the little-known Annonaceae genus Diclinanona. However, the texture and venation of the leaves were very different from the other three species of that genus. In this study, based on a phylogenomic analysis it is shown that this taxon indeed forms a monophyletic clade with the other three species of Diclinanona, to which it is sister. It is therefore described as a new species, Diclinanona coriacea. Principal component analysis and linear discriminant analysis reveal that soil variables are particularly important for the spatial separation of the species, supportin