Boechera microsatellite website: an online portal for species identification and determination of hybrid parentage

Boechera (Brassicaceae) has many features to recommend it as a model genus for ecological and evolutionary research, including species richness, ecological diversity, experimental tractability and close phylogenetic proximity to Arabidopsis . However, efforts to realize the full potential of this model system have been thwarted by the frequent inability of researchers to identify their samples and place them in a broader evolutionary context. Here we present the Boechera Microsatellite Website (BMW), a portal that archives over 55 000 microsatellite allele calls from 4471 specimens (including 133 nomenclatural types). The portal includes analytical tools that utilize data from 15 microsatellite loci as a highly effective DNA barcoding system. The BMW facilitates the accurate identification of Boechera samples and the investigation of reticulate evolution among the ±83 sexual diploid taxa in the genus, thereby greatly enhancing Boechera 's potential as a model system.