Zosteraceae

Zosteraceae (one of the four seagrasses families, Kubitzki ed. 1998) is a family of marine perennial flowering plants found in temperate and subtropical coastal waters, with the highest diversity located around Korea and Japan. Most seagrasses complete their entire life cycle under water,^[3] having filamentous pollen especially adapted to dispersion in an aquatic environment and ribbon-like leaves that lack stomata. Seagrasses are herbaceous and have prominent creeping rhizomes. A distinctive characteristic of the family is the presence of characteristic retinacules, which are present in all species except members of Zostera subgenus Zostera.

Zosteraceae
Zostera marina, from Lindman (1917–1926)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Order:	Alismatales
Family:	Zosteraceae Dumort.[1][2]
Genera
Phyllospadix Zostera

Zosteraceae has long been accepted by taxonomists as monophyletic. The APG II system of 2003 recognizes this family and places it in the monocot order Alismatales. The family contains approximately twenty-two species divided between two genera, Phyllospadix and Zostera totalling 22 known species (Christenhusz & Byng 2016 ^[4]). Zostera contains three subgenera: Heterozostera (formerly considered a separate genus ^[5]), Zostera and Zosterella.^[6] Zosteraceae is closely related to Potamogetonaceae, a family of freshwater aquatics.

Zosteraceae is a conserved name.

Taxonomy

Marine grasses families: Zosteraceae, Cymodoceaceae, Ruppiaceae and Posidoniaceae. Related families: Potamogetonaceae and sometimes including Zannichelliaceae.

Families and Genera crosses (Sea grasses)

Kubitzki (ed. 1998[7])	Watson & Dallwitz (delta-intkey)[8]	data.kew[9]	APWeb (mobot.org)[10]
Zosteraceae
1. Zostera L.	Zostera	Zostera L.	Zostera L. (including Heterozostera den Hartog, Macrozostera Tomlinson & Posluzny, Nanozostera Tomlinson & Posluzny, Zosterella J. K. Small)
2. Heterozostera den Hartog	Heterozostera	Heterozostera (Setch.) Hartog	(in Zostera)
3. Phyllospadix Hook.	Phyllospadix	Phyllospadix Hook.	Phyllospadix J. D. Hooker
Cymodoceaceae
1. Syringodium Kütz	Syringodium	Syringodium Kutz.	(in Cymodocea)
2. Halodule Endl.	Halodule	Halodule Endl.	Halodule Endlicher
3. Cymodocea König	Cymodocea	Cymodocea K.Koenig (including Phycoschoenus (Asch.) Nakai )	Cymodocea König (including Amphibolis Agardh ?, Syringodium Kütz. ?, Thalassodendron den Hartog ?)
4. Amphibolis Agardh	Amphibolis	Amphibolis C.Agardh (including Pectinella J.M.Black)	(in Cymodocea)
5. Thalassodendron de Hartog	(name not found)	Thalassodendron Hartog	(in Cymodocea)
Ruppiaceae
Ruppia L.	Ruppia	(in Ruppia L. in Potamogetonaceae)	Ruppia L.
Posidoniaceae
Posidonia König	Posidonia	Posidonia K.Koenig	Posidonia König

Families and Genera crosses (Potamogetonaceae)

Kubitzki (ed. 1998[11])	Watson & Dallwitz (delta-intkey)[12]	data.kew[13]	APWeb (mobot.org)[14]
Potamogetonaceae
1. Potamogeton L.	Potamogeton	Potamogeton L.	Potamogeton L. (including Coleogeton Les & Haynes, Stuckenia Börner)
2. Groenlandia J. Gray	Groenlandia	Groenlandia J.Gay	Groenlandia J. Gay
(in Ruppia in Ruppiaceae)	(in Ruppia in Ruppiaceae)	Ruppia L.	(in Ruppia in Ruppiaceae)
(in Althenia: Zannichelliaceae and Lepilaena: Zannichelliaceae)	(in Althenia: Zannichelliaceae and Lepilaena: Zannichelliaceae)	(in Althenia F.Petit: Zannichelliaceae and Lepilaena J.L.Drumm. ex Harv.:Zannichelliaceae)	Althenia Petit (including Lepilaena Harvey)
(in Pseudalthenia including Vleisia: Zannichelliaceae)	(in Pseudalthenia: Zannichelliaceae and Vleisia: Zannichelliaceae)	(Pseudalthenia not found, Vleisia Toml. & Posl.: Zannichelliaceae)	Pseudalthenia Nakai (including Vleisia Tomlinson & Posluszny)
(in Zannichellia L.: Zannichelliaceae)	(in Zannichellia: Zannichelliaceae)	(in Zannichellia L.: Zannichelliaceae)	Zannichellia L.
Zannichelliaceae
1. Zannichellia L.	Zannichellia	Zannichellia L.	(in Zannichellia L.: Potamogetonaceae)
2. Pseudalthenia Nakai (including Vleisia)	Pseudalthenia (excluding Vleisia)	(name not found)	(in Pseudalthenia: Potamogetonaceae)
3. Althenia Petit (excluding Lepilaena Drumm. ex. Harv.)	Althenia (excluding Lepilaena)	Althenia F.Petit (excluding Lepilaena J.L.Drumm. ex Harv.)	Althenia Petit (including Lepilaena Harvey)
4. Lepilaena Drumm. ex. Harv.	Lepilaena	Lepilaena J.L.Drumm. ex Harv.	(in Althenia Petit)
(in Pseudalthenia)	Vleisia	Vleisia Toml. & Posl.	(in Pseudalthenia: Potamogetonaceae)

References

1. Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (2009). "An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 161 (2): 105–121. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.2009.00996.x.
2. Dumortier (1829). Analyse des Familles de Plantes : avec l'indication des principaux genres qui s'y rattachent. Tournay.
3. Ackerman, JD (1997). "Submarine pollination in the marine angiosperm Zostera marina (Zosteraceae) I: The influence of floral morphology on fluid flow". American Journal of Botany. 84 (8). Botanical Society of America: 1099–1109. doi:10.2307/2446153. JSTOR 2446153. PMID 21708665.
4. Christenhusz, M. J. M. & Byng, J. W. (2016). "The number of known plants species in the world and its annual increase". Phytotaxa. 261 (3). Magnolia Press: 201–217. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.261.3.1.
5. Jacobs, S.W.L.; Lee, D.H. (2009). "New combinations in Zostera (Zosteraceae)". Telopea. 12 (3): 419–423. doi:10.7751/telopea20095827.
6. Les, D.H.; Moody, M.L.; Jacobs, S.W.L.; Bayer, R.J. (2002). "Systematics of Seagrasses (Zosteraceae) in Australia and New Zealand" (abstract). Systematic Botany. 27 (3): 468–484. doi:10.1043/0363-6445-27.3.468 (inactive 1 November 2024).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
7. Kubitzki (ed.) 1998. The families and genera of vascular plants, vol 4, Monocotyledons: Alismatanae and Commelinanae (except Gramineae). Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
8. Watson & Dallwitz. Zosteraceae. The families of flowering plants. http://delta-intkey.com/angio/www/zosterac.htm
9. "Vascular Plant Families and Genera. List of genera in family Cymodoceaceae". data.kew.org. Kew Royal Botanical Gardens. Retrieved 2016-06-02.
10. Vascular Plant Families and Genera. List of Genera in Cymodoceaceae (accessed 2016-06-02)
11. Kubitzki (ed.) 1998. The families and genera of vascular plants, vol 4, Monocotyledons: Alismatanae and Commelinanae (except Gramineae). Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
12. Watson & Dallwitz. Potamogetonaceae. The families of flowering plants. http://delta-intkey.com/angio/www/potamoge.htm
13. "Vascular Plant Families and Genera. List of genera in family Potamogetonaceae". data.kew.org. Kew Royal Botanical Gardens. Retrieved 2016-06-02.
14. Vascular Plant Families and Genera. List of Genera in Potamogetonaceae (accessed 2016-06-02)

Further reading

Waycott, M, McMahon, K, Lavery, P 2014, A Guide to Southern Temperate Seagrasses, CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, ISBN 9781486300150

External links

• Zosteraceae in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards).
• The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval. Version: 27 April 2006.
• Zosteraceae in the Flora of North America
• NCBI Taxonomy Browser
• links at CSDL, Texas