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Home : Science : Biology : Flora and Fauna : Plantae : Polypodiophyta
Polypodiophyta
Also known as the Pteridopsida, or the ferns.
These plants have a reduced gametophytic stage, with the sporophytic stage of growth being dominant in the life cycle. The ferns still produce spores like mosses, however, they have specialised vascular tissue (xylem and phloem ) as
seen in the angiosperms. Ferns are characterised by spore-producing megaphylls ("fronds") arising from a stem. The stem can vary from a horizontal, underground rhizome to tall and trunk-like.
The division Polypodiophyta contains three orders, the Ophioglossales, Marattiales and the Filicales.
These plants have a reduced gametophytic stage, with the sporophytic stage of growth being dominant in the life cycle. The ferns still produce spores like mosses, however, they have specialised vascular tissue (xylem and phloem ) as
seen in the angiosperms. Ferns are characterised by spore-producing megaphylls ("fronds") arising from a stem. The stem can vary from a horizontal, underground rhizome to tall and trunk-like.
The division Polypodiophyta contains three orders, the Ophioglossales, Marattiales and the Filicales.
Sites in Polypodiophyta
Introduction to the Ferns
The ferns are an ancient lineage of plants, dating back to at least the Devonian. They include three living groups - Marattiales, Ophioglossales, and leptosporangiate ferns - as well as a couple of extinct groups.
Filicopsida
Introduction to ferns from the Tree of Life project.
Leptosporangiate Ferns
Next to the flowering plants, the leptosporangiate ferns are the most diverse group of living land plants. Estimates place their diversity at about 12,000 species in around 300 genera. This page is part of the tree of life phylogeny project.
Pterophyta
Introduction to the systematics of the ferns, with family descriptions and images.
Phylum Pterophyta
Includes a description of the fern life cycle, list of families and genera, and links to images of selected representatives.
Pterophyta Taxa
List of all families and genera, with numbers of species and ranges.
British Fern Species
Searchable database.
Ferns of Great Britain and Ireland
Small images of 39 antique prints by Thomas Moore, 1855.
Ferns of Fern Forest and South Florida
Photographs and descriptions of the ferns of southern Florida.
Ferns Around Washington, DC
A collection of images and information on ferns growing in the DC area.
Ferns et al of New England and Bermuda
Lists all native pteridophyte species and some hybrids, with photographs of most and data pages for some.
Ferns of the Canberra Region
A site about ferns in southeastern Australia, their ecology, how to grow them, information on ferns in general, with numerous photographs.
American Fern Society
Information on the biology and cultivation of ferns; activities of the society including a spore exchange and publication of Fiddlehead Forum, American Fern Journal, and Pteridologia.
Ferns of Barbados
Checklist plus distribution data and links for each species.
Gallery of Connecticut Ferns
Photos and brief information indexed by common and scientific names.
Recent pteridophyte name changes
Refers to Australian taxa and mainly changes effected in the 1990s.
Phylogeny and evolution of ferns (Monilophytes)
Scientific paper from American Journal of Botany 2004 showing that Psilotophyta and Equisetophya are in the Monilophyte clade with the other ferns. |
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