Hook leaf plants
Hook leaf plants | ||||||||||||
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Hook leaf ( Triphyophyllum peltatum ) |
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Systematics | ||||||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||||||
Dioncophyllaceae | ||||||||||||
Airy Shaw |
The hook leaf family (Dioncophyllaceae) are a family from the order of the carnation-like (Caryophyllales) with three monotypical genera . The family is fossilized as far back as the Eocene .
description
All species are large, soft woody lianas and climb by means of forked hooks that arise at the tip of the midrib of the leaf. The hook leaves are remarkable for their (optional) carnivory. The parallel- veined rosette leaves are long. The plants are hermaphroditic and form capsule fruits . Their seeds germinate cryptocotylar . The chromosome number is 2n = 36.
distribution
The family is native to the lowland rainforests of West Africa, where they colonize nutrient-poor soils.
Systematics
The systematic position of the hook leaf family has been controversial since its discovery; only recent genetic studies (supported by biochemical studies) have placed it as a member of the carnation-like family , as a sister group of the Ancistrocladaceae and closely related to the ( monogeneric ) pigeon leaf family .
The hook leaf family comprises three genera, each with one species:
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Dioncophyllum
Airy Shaw
- Dioncophyllum thollonii Baill.
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Habropetalum Airy Shaw
- Habropetalum dawei (Hutch, & Dalziel) Airy Shaw
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Triphyophyllum Airy Shaw
- Hook leaf ( Triphyophyllum peltatum (Hutch. & Dalziel) Airy Shaw)
Web links
- The family in the APWebsite (Engl.)
- Family description at DELTA. (engl.)
- Entry at GRIN.