Molecular diversity, phylogeography and genetic relationships of the Silene paradoxa group of section Siphonomorpha (Caryophyllaceae)

We investigate the genetic diversity and demographic patterns of the Silene paradoxa group from section Siphonomorpha, which includes the three species S. paradoxa, S. fruticosa and S. aristidis. Eight additional taxa, belonging to the same section, were also included in this study for comparative purposes: S. nutans, S. viridiflora and six species of the italica complex. The nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and the two chloroplast spacers trnH–psbA and trnS–trnG show that the paradoxa group constitutes a separate genetic lineage within section Siphonomorpha and includes three well-differentiated species, characterized by different levels of genetic diversity and demographic histories. All three species showed specific haplotypes and ITS variants, intraspecific variation and contrasting demographic histories. S. paradoxa probably followed a demographic expansion scenario, whereas S. fruticosa and S. aristidis most likely went through spatial expansions in the past. Chasmophyte species and species from open rocky habitats are found in both the paradoxa group and the italica complex, suggesting that the switch between the chasmophytic and open habitats occurred at least twice in the Siphonomorpha section.