Abstract
To clarify whether the closely related species living in the same area is a population or populations ecologically, leaf morphology, specific leaf area, and fruit and seed production were studied in the natural group of sect. Pes-gallinaceua of Corydalis of Namhansansung area from 1999 to 2000. There were 352 plants in one square meter and total eight species or varieties were identified. Of the 352 plants, the number of C. turtschaninovii was the most with 103(29.3%), and that of C. ambigua was the next with 78(22.2%), and that of C. turtschaninovii var. fumariaefolia was the smallest with 9(2.6%). In the 28 plants having spotted leaves, central leaflet did not parted or again parted. The extent of partition with the plant was various from non-parted type to perfectly two-parted type (three leaflet). Between two extreme types, there were diverse types so that this character formed a gradient. The rate of length/breadth was in the range of 0.79~2.17. This character was related to the extent of leaflet partition but did not well expressed the distinguishing trait along a species. The number and the type of serration were diverse and there was no sharp borderline among the species or varieties. Ecological properties, specific leaf area, the number of fruit per plant, and the number of seed per fruit, varied with a wide range in a species or variety but differences between species or variety were not significant. Therefore, the Corydalis group studied was regarded as a population on the three criteria: (1) possibility of interbreeding, (2) continuity of leaf morphology, (3) irrelevance between character and species, (4) similarity of several ecological properties.
