Tectariaceae
Encyclopedia
Tectariaceae is a family
of Leptosporangiate fern
s in the order
Polypodiales
. It comprises 10 genera
. Tectaria is much larger than the other genera.
In 1990, Karl U. Kramer and coauthors treated Pleocnemia and 7 of the currently recognized genera as a subfamily of Dryopteridaceae
. Two other genera, Arthropteris and Psammiosorus, along with Oleandra
, constituted Kramer's Oleandraceae. It is now known that Kramer's version
of Dryopteridaceae is polyphyletic. Arthropteris and Psammiosorus form a clade
that is sister to the rest of Tectariaceae and Tectariaceae is sister to a clade consisting of Oleandraceae, Davalliaceae
, and Polypodiaceae
. In 2006, in a revision of fern classification
, Tectariaceae was an accepted family. In 2007, a molecular phylogenetic study
of Dryopteridaceae included Pleocnemia and showed that it belongs in Dryopteridaceae. Also in 2007, Dracoglossum was named
as a new genus. It is probably most closely related
to Hypoderris.
Tectariaceae has never been the main subject of a cladistic analysis, and the relationships
among its genera are poorly understood. The genus Tectaria was recently defined broadly to include Ctenitopsis, Quercifilix, Hemigramma, and some other genera that many works
have recognized. This article has treated Tectaria in the same broad sense.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of Leptosporangiate fern
Leptosporangiate fern
Leptosporangiate ferns are the largest group of living ferns. They are often considered to be the class Pteridopsida or Polypodiopsida, although other classifications assign them a different rank...
s in the order
Order (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
Polypodiales
Polypodiales
The order Polypodiales encompasses the major lineages of polypod ferns, which comprise more than 80% of today's fern species. They are found in many parts of the world including tropical, semitropical and temperate areas...
. It comprises 10 genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
. Tectaria is much larger than the other genera.
In 1990, Karl U. Kramer and coauthors treated Pleocnemia and 7 of the currently recognized genera as a subfamily of Dryopteridaceae
Dryopteridaceae
Dryopteridaceae, is a family of leptosporangiate ferns in the order Polypodiales. They are known colloquially as the wood ferns. They comprise about 1700 species and have a cosmopolitan distribution. They may be terrestrial, epipetric, hemiepiphytic, or epiphytic. Many are cultivated as...
. Two other genera, Arthropteris and Psammiosorus, along with Oleandra
Oleandra
Oleandra is a genus of fern in family Oleandraceae. It contains the following species :* Oleandra hainanensis, Ching...
, constituted Kramer's Oleandraceae. It is now known that Kramer's version
Circumscription (taxonomy)
In taxonomy, circumscription is the definition of the limits of a taxonomic group of organisms. One goal of taxonomy is to achieve a stable circumscription for every taxonomic group. Achieving stability can be simple or difficult....
of Dryopteridaceae is polyphyletic. Arthropteris and Psammiosorus form a clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
that is sister to the rest of Tectariaceae and Tectariaceae is sister to a clade consisting of Oleandraceae, Davalliaceae
Davalliaceae
Davalliaceae is a family of ferns in the order Polypodiales. It is sister to the largest family of ferns, Polypodiaceae, and shares some morphological characters with it....
, and Polypodiaceae
Polypodiaceae
Polypodiaceae is a family of polypod ferns, which includes more than 60 genera divided into several tribes and containing around 1,000 species. Nearly all are epiphytes, but some are terrestrial.-Description:...
. In 2006, in a revision of fern classification
History of plant systematics
The history of plant systematics—the biological classification of plants—stretches from the work of ancient Greek to modern evolutionary biologists. As a field of science, plant systematics came into being only slowly, early plant lore usually being treated as part of the study of...
, Tectariaceae was an accepted family. In 2007, a molecular phylogenetic study
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
of Dryopteridaceae included Pleocnemia and showed that it belongs in Dryopteridaceae. Also in 2007, Dracoglossum was named
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
as a new genus. It is probably most closely related
Plant taxonomy
Plant taxonomy is the science that finds, describes, classifies, identifies, and names plants. It thus is one of the main branches of taxonomy.Plant taxonomy is closely allied to plant systematics, and there is no sharp boundary between the two...
to Hypoderris.
Tectariaceae has never been the main subject of a cladistic analysis, and the relationships
Biological classification
Biological classification, or scientific classification in biology, is a method to group and categorize organisms by biological type, such as genus or species. Biological classification is part of scientific taxonomy....
among its genera are poorly understood. The genus Tectaria was recently defined broadly to include Ctenitopsis, Quercifilix, Hemigramma, and some other genera that many works
Treatise
A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject.-Noteworthy treatises:...
have recognized. This article has treated Tectaria in the same broad sense.