World Wide Flowering Plant Family Identification
http://www.colby.edu/info.tech/BI211/PlantFamilyID.html
• 180 characters with two or more alternate states • The more information you collect, the fewer options you need explore… • Usefulness of synoptic descriptions • Plenty of information about families on the web!
Select the characters (states) that are present in the specimen being identified. Press Submit when ready to determine possible families. Pressing "Back" at the top of the window brings you back to this page keeping your character selections. LIST OF CHARACTERS Plant Habit 1. Woody plants (excl. suffrutices) 2. Herbaceous plants (incl. suffrutices) 3. Aquatic plants, leaves floating or submerged 4. Climbers, lianas 5. Chlorophyll absent (parasites or saprophytes) 6. Bulb present (monocots only) 7. Milky juice present 8. Spiny stems or leaves 9. Tendrils present 10. Cladodes or phyllodes (modified branches or petioles) Vestiture 11. Hairs glandular 12. Hairs stellate (also 2-armed, branched and tufted) 13. Hairs stellate (not 2-armed, branched an….
Angiosperms: - Pollination was key to diversification
Floral Formula: Collective flower parts: Perianth:
• calyx sepal
• corolla • petal
Androecium: • stamen anther filament
Floral Formula: Collective flower parts:
Gynoecium: • pistil(s) ovary(ies) carpel style stigma
syncarpous
apocarpous
Floral Formula:
Ca Co A G # # # #
Hypogynous flower ! 3
connation
Ca
Co
A
G
# #
#
Epigynous flower
5
A 5
Co #
adnation
Anemone japonica
Floral Formula: Floral Formula:
Ca Co
A G
� �
� � P �
Floral Diagram
Ranunculaceae:
60 genera 1700 species
Gladiolus spp. (~240)
Iridaceae: 80 genera 1500 species
Monocots vs Dicots:
Angiosperms: - Relationships of angiosperms: Monocots vs Dicots
Amborella trichopoda
Dioecious male: P5-8, A∞ female: P5-8,G5-6 superior
Amborellaceae
monotypic
Basal Angiosperms: Magnoliaceae
Synoecious P∞, A∞, G∞ [2-∞] superior
7 genera 219 species
Basal Angiosperms: Magnoliaceae
Aristolochiaceae
Basal Angiosperms:
Synoecious Ca(3),Co0[3],A6-∞ usu. adnate to style, G(4-6) inferior (half-inferior)
Basal Angiosperms: Nymphaeaceae
Synoecious Ca4-6 [-14], Co8-∞ [0], A∞, G(3-∞) superior or inferior Aquatic rhyzomatous herbs
3-6 genera
Araceae Basal Angiosperms:
100 genera 3700 species
spathe & spadix
Looking, describing, naming is …
seeing! Families to know:
Ranunculaceae (Ranunculales – Eudicots) Iridaceae (Asparagales - Monocots) Amborellaceae (Amborellales) Magnoliaceace (Magnoliales – Magnoliids) Araceae (Alismatales - Monocots) Aristolochiaceae (Piperales - Magnoliids) Nymphaeaceae (Nymphaeales)
Magnoliids