Molecular phylogenetics of the Senecio inaequidens-Senecio madagascariensis complex (Asteraceae: Senecioneae)

Species delimitation in the fireweed complex is controversial, and identification of specimens is difficult. Recently, phylogenetic analysis found the southern African specimens of S. madagascariensis form a sister group to nearly all specimens of the invasive lineage from Australia, New Zealand, and Europe, raising doubt about the established provenance of the latter. We expanded sampling of the fireweed complex to include South America, Japan, the Hawaiian Islands, and Madagascar, and deepened sampling from continental southern Africa and Australia, and used Angiosperm353 target-capture data to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships within the Senecio inaequidens-S. madagascariensis complex across its range.