Micropholis Barcodes

Many species are difficult to identify in the absence of reproductive traits and in juvenile stages. As a result, we may underestimate the biodiversity of the ecosystems where these species grow that is an impediment to management and conservation decision making. Here we present data in which we argue that the generation of DNA barcode reference libraries using DNA extracted from type specimens could resolve issues related to correct identification. The genus Micropholis (Griseb.) Pierre (Sapotaceae) is diverse and ecologically important in Neotropical lowland rain forests. We first assessed the capacity of the molecular markers ITS2, matK and rbcL in differentiating species in the genus. Based on a phylogenetic reconstruction we found that many individuals in our study were incorrectly identified and we explain that if we had access to a type specimen DNA barcode reference library we would have more rapidly and accurately identified individuals. This approach could be extended to other difficult to identify taxa.