Stony endocarp dimension and shape variation in Prunus section Prunus. Annals of Botany 100

†Background and Aims Identification of Prunus groups at subspecies or variety level is complicated by the wide range of variation and morphological transitional states. Knowledge of the degree of variability within and between species is a sine qua non for taxonomists. Here, a detailed study of endocarp dimension and shape variation for taxa of Prunus section Prunus is presented. †Methods The sample size necessary to obtain an estimation of the population mean with a precision of 5 % was determined by iteration. Two cases were considered: (1) the population represents an individual; and (2) the popu-lation represents a species. The intra-individual and intraspecific variation of Prunus endocarps was studied by ana-lysing the coefficients of variance for dimension and shape parameters. Morphological variation among taxa was assessed using univariate statistics. The influence of the time of sampling and the level of hydration on endocarp dimensions and shape was examined by means of pairwise t-tests. In total, 14 endocarp characters were examined for five Eurasian plum taxa. †Key Results All linear measurements and index values showed a low or normal variability on the individual and species level. In contrast, the parameter ‘Vertical Asymmetry ’ had high coefficients of variance for one or more of the taxa studied. Of all dimension and shape parameters studied, only ‘Triangle ’ differed significantly between mature endocarps of P. insititia sampled with a time difference of 1 month. The level of hydration affected endocar