LEAF SURFACE FEATURES AS TAXONOMIC EVIDENCES TO IDENTIFY SOME SPECIES OF GENUS EUCALYPTUS IN EGYPT BY USING SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPE
Annotatsiya
Morphological characters and ultrastructural leaf variations of nine species belong to genus Eucalyptus were studied. These species are; Eucalyptus camaledulensis, E. cinerea, E. citriodora , E. ficifolia , E. globules, E. gomphocephala, E. kruseana, E. resinfera and E. rostrata . The macro-morphological characters revealed that, there are different leaf shapes; each characterized more than one species. The micro-morphological results of upper epidermis clarified that there are five sharply distinct leaf sculpture patterns; Pusticulate, Ruminate, Glebulate, Colliculate and Favulariate. While that of the lower epidermis had six leaf sculpture patterns; Ruminate, Verrucate, Verculate, Rugose, Favulariate and Clliculate, except one species, where the leaf has sculpture pattern overlaphing between Ruminate and Favularlate. The artificial key has been designed to identify the studied species. However, this study can be serve as a limited taxonomic knowledge about the studied and may be useful in other future studies. Conclusively, from the pervious results of such research it could be conclude that the more close species to each other were; E. ficifolia and E.globules; E.resinfera and E.rostrata. Contrary, the most far species from each other were E.cinerea and E.krusean.