Foliar micromorphology as an additional taxonomic tool to identify taxa of Abutilon Mill. (Malvaceae) endemic to Indian Thar Desert

Abstract

The present research work is based on the study of leaf micromorphological variations between two endemic species of genus Abutilon namely A. bidentatum and A. fruticosum distributed in the Indian Thar Desert area of Rajasthan. Leaves of both species are amphistomatic and amphitrichomatic. However differentiation can be made in both the species on basis of epidermal cell wall pattern, stomatal frequency and stomata index, trichome density and morphologically diverse type of egalndular and glandular trichomes. Micromorphological features of leaves can serve as a valuable taxonomic tool for identifying and distinguishing species, even in their vegetative state when flowers and fruits are absent.