Reinstatement of the Southern Andean genus Stenodraba (Brassicaceae) based on molecular data and insights from its environmental and geographic distribution

Stenodraba (Brassicaceae) included a group of eight species distributed along the Andes of South-Central Argentina and Chile. All of its species were subsequently transferred to other genera and are currently treated in Pennellia (Tribe Halimolobeae) and Weberbauera (Tribe Thelypodieae). However, the phylogeny of Stenodraba and its tribal placement were never analyzed using molecular data. The lack of such studies, as well as paucity of herbarium collections suggesting that some species are vulnerable and/or endangered, prompted us to address the molecular phylogeny of Stenodraba. For this purpose, we generated comprehensive molecular phylogenies using nuclear (ITS) and plastid (trnL-F and trnH-psbA) data, and conducted different niche comparisons in the environmental and geographic space using climate data processed both by ordination and species distribution modelling (SDM) techniques. The results demonstrated that Stenodraba belongs to the South American tribe Eudemeae and is related...