Seed morphology of Ricotia (Brassicaceae) and its phylogenetic and systematic implication

•Wingless seeds and a reticulate seed surface are ancestral for eastern Mediterranean endemic Ricotia.•Distribution of seed shape corresponds with the phylogenetic concept for Ricotia.•Papillate seed surface evolved independently in two Ricotia lineages.

In the present study, macro- and micromorphological characters of seeds in Ricotia L. (9 species and 30 accessions) were examined by light (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to evaluate the taxonomic relevance of these traits. Four main seed surface types were detected (papillate, reticulate, reticulate-papillate and undulate) in Ricotia. In order to address the evolution of selected seed characters, ancestral character state reconstruction analysis was performed. The results indicate that the lack of wing and the reticulate surface are ancestral states for Ricotia. Finally, mapping of seed shape characters (but not the seed surface microsculpturing) among Ricotia species is concordant with current phylogenetic concepts of Ricotia.