The family Orchidaceae has an extremely diverse and complex evolutionary relationship. Despite global studies on orchid genetic diversity and evolution, the local wild orchids remain less characterized for genetic diversity in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq. Consequently, the genetic diversity of this local ecotype remains unknown. This study aimed to examine the morphometric patterns and molecular genotyping of six species (Anacamptis papilionacea, Himantoglossum caprinum, Ophrys reinholdii, Ophrys schulzei, Ophrys sphegodes subsp. taurica, and Orchis mascula) of wild orchids collected in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq. A morphological study revealed that the genus Ophrys taxa had remarkable phenotypic differences, particularly in the speculum colors and labellum patterns. Species H. caprinum was distinctive because of the long and ribbon-like central labellum lobe. The morphological characterization through Iraqi flora and molecular analysis confirmed the species O. mascula as an Orchis clade component. Molecular analysis involved amplification and sequencing of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS4 region, and the phylogenetic tree showed four major clades corresponding to the four genera Ophrys, Anacamptis, Himantoglossum, and Orchis. Consequently, integrating morphological traits with ITS-based phylogeny supported the current taxonomic placement of the studied taxa and highlighted the values of integrative approaches in plant taxonomy.
Orchidaceae, genetic diversity, morphological traits, ITS markers, Ophrys, Anacamptis, Himantoglossum, Orchis
The results revealed the ITS marker provides a reliable and efficient approach for species identification among six orchid taxa, hence enhancing integrative taxonomy and facilitating species differentiation within the family Orchidaceae.