Biology:Botrychium paradoxum

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Short description: North American species of moonwort

Botrychium paradoxum
Botrychium paradoxum.jpg

Vulnerable (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification edit
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Ophioglossales
Family: Ophioglossaceae
Genus: Botrychium
Species:
B. paradoxum
Binomial name
Botrychium paradoxum
W.H.Wagner

Botrychium paradoxum is a species of fern in the family Ophioglossaceae[2] known by the common name peculiar moonwort. It is native to North America, where there are scattered occurrences in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington (state) , and Wyoming.[3]

This plant is unique among the moonworts. While other species generally produce one fertile frond and one sterile, this species produces only the fertile frond. This frond has two segments, both bearing spores.[4] The plant grows up to 15 centimeters (5.9 in) tall. As the leaflike sterile frond is absent, the plant likely obtains much of its energy from mycorrhizae instead of photosynthesis.[3]

This fern grows in the montane, subalpine, and alpine zones in snowfields and western red cedar forests.[4][3]

References

  1. "NatureServe Explorer". NatureServe. 2022. https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.159583. 
  2. Christenhusz, Maarten J. M.; Zhang, Xian-Chun; Schneider, Harald (2011). "A linear sequence of extant families and genera of lycophytes and ferns" (PDF). Phytotaxa 19: 7–54. http://www.mapress.com/phytotaxa/content/2011/f/pt00019p054.pdf. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Botrychium paradoxum. The Nature Conservancy.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Wagner Jr., Warren H.; Wagner, Florence S. (1993), "Botrychium paradoxum", in Flora of North America Editorial Committee, Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA), 2, New York and Oxford, http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=233500289 

External links

Wikidata ☰ Q4948804 entry