ALLOZYMIC AND MORPHOMETRIC VARIATION IN LEMNA-MINOR (LEMNACEAE)

Allozymic and morphometric variation was studied in 28 clones of Lemna minor. This variation was compared with the corresponding variation in four clones of Lemna gibba and four clones of Spirodela polyrrhiza. A high level of allozymic variation was observed among the clones, despite having been grown under uniform laboratory conditions for several years and despite its quasi-exclusive clonal means of propagation. Based on degree of allozymic similarity, Spirodela polyrrhiza was distinguished from the two Lemna species but the latter species were genetically indistinguishable. Allozymic similarity among clones of Lemna minor was not related to morphometric similarity, nor was it related to the degree of geographic separation or climatic similarity of their sites of origin. The results suggest that allozymic variation among these clones of Lemna minor may be largely neutral and not a consequence of differential selection.