Volume 26, Issue 78, July - December, 2025

Taxonomic Implications of Leaf Epidermal Anatomy in Some Members of Genus Quisqualis L. and Guiera senegalensis J.F. GMEL

Tolulope A Durodola^1♦, Opeyemi M Mudasiru¹, Daniel A Idowu², Otoh D Umoren²

¹Department of Pure and Applied Botany, College of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria
²Department of Biological Sciences, Pure Sciences Institute, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria

^♦Corresponding Author
Tolulope A Durodola, Department of Botany, College of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

The genus Quisqualis (Combretaceae) is used as an herbal medicine and genus Guiera (Combretaceae) distributed widely in Western Africa, and used in traditional medicine. Morphological studies of the leaf epidermis of some members of the genus Quisqualis L. and Guiera senegalensis J. F GMEL. are presented. Fresh and herbarium species were used. These specimens were fixed, peeled, and epidermal characters were identified and micrographed. The study revealed the leaf epidermal characters such as pattern of epidermal cells, types of stomata, and presence of trichomes which are constant in some species and variable in others, and thus of great significance in understanding the relationships between and within species. The stomata length, width, density, and index also vary in different species. It is concluded that the numerical analysis could be used for understanding the phenetic relationships among various species of Quisqualis and Guiera senegalensis. The findings contribute to the botanical profiling of the area and provide a valuable reference for future studies in taxonomy, ecology, and conservation.

Keywords: Quisqualis (Combretaceae), Guiera (Combretaceae), Herbal Medicine, Morphological, Leaf Epidermal, Taxonomy.

Species, 2025, 26(78), e40s3189

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.54905/disssi.v26i78.e40s3189

Published: 25 August 2025