Cornaceae

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Cornaceae
Cornus suecica Ume River.jpg
Cornus suecica
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Cornales
Family: Cornaceae
Bercht. & J.Presl
Genera

The Cornaceae are a cosmopolitan family of flowering plants in the order Cornales. The family contains approximately 85 species in two genera, [1] Alangium and Cornus . They are mostly trees and shrubs, which may be deciduous or evergreen, although a few species are perennial herbs. Members of the family usually have opposite or alternate simple leaves, four- or five-parted flowers clustered in inflorescences or pseudanthia, and drupaceous fruits. [2] The family is primarily distributed in northern temperate regions and tropical Asia. [3] In northern temperate areas, Cornaceae are well known from the dogwoods Cornus .

Contents

The systematics of Cornaceae has been remarkably unsettled and controversial, and many genera have been added to it and removed from it over time. (One researcher called it a "dustbin". [4] ) Molecular phylogenetics have clarified the relatedness of some associated genera, and at least nine genera that were previously included in Cornaceae have been eliminated from the order Cornales entirely, [5] but the circumscription of Cornaceae is still unclear. The Angiosperm Phylogeny Group usually defines Cornaceae as comprising the genera Cornus and Alangium as well as five genera now separated into the family Nyssaceae. However, many of these genera are sometimes split off into their own families (e.g. Alangiaceae), and the usage remains inconsistent. [5] [6]

Fossil record

The oldest fossil that can be related to Cornaceae is †Hironoia fusiformis, an extinct taxon collected from the Futaba Group sediments at Kamitikaba, Japan. Synapomorphies of the fruits of the fossil occur also in extant Cornaceae. The age of the sediments is of early Coniacian to early Santonian (about 88 Ma). [7] Although the mosaic of characters in Hironoia precludes assignment to an extant genus, the fiber rather than sclereid composition of the fruit places it within the Nyssaceae-Mastixiaceae. Other possible Cornaceae from Cretaceous sediments include endocarps resembling Cornus from the Santonian-Campanian mesofossil assemblage of Åsen. In slightly younger Late Cretaceous sediments (Maastrichtian) four genera of fossil mastixioid fruits (Beckettia, Eomastixia, Mastixicarpum and Mastixiopsis) have been described from Germany. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saxifragales</span> Order of Eudicot flowering plants in the Superrosid clade

Saxifragales is an order of angiosperms, or flowering plants, containing 15 botanical families and around 100 genera, with nearly 2,500 species. Of the 15 families, many are small, with eight of them being monotypic. The largest family is the Crassulaceae (stonecrops), a diverse group of mostly succulent plants, with about 35 genera. Saxifragales are found worldwide, primarily in temperate to subtropical zones, rarely being encountered growing wild in the tropics; however, many species are now cultivated throughout the world as knowledge of plant husbandry has improved. They can be found in a wide variety of environments, from deserts to fully aquatic habitats, with species adapted to alpine, forested or fully-aquatic habitats. Many are epiphytic or lithophytic, growing on exposed cliff faces, on trees or on rocks, and not requiring a highly organic or nutrient-dense substrate to thrive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vitaceae</span> Family of flowering plants that includes grapes and Virginia creeper

The Vitaceae are a family of flowering plants, with 14 genera and around 910 known species, including common plants such as grapevines and Virginia creeper. The family name is derived from the genus Vitis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornales</span> Order of flowering plants

The Cornales are an order of flowering plants, early diverging among the asterids, containing about 600 species. Plants within the Cornales usually have four-parted flowers, drupaceous fruits, and inferior to half-inferior gynoecia topped with disc-shaped nectaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elaeagnaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

The Elaeagnaceae are a plant family, the oleaster family, of the order Rosales comprising small trees and shrubs, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, south into tropical Asia and Australia. The family has about 60 species in three genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ceratophyllaceae</span> Family of aquatic plants

Ceratophyllaceae is a cosmopolitan family of flowering plants including one living genus commonly found in ponds, marshes, and quiet streams in tropical and in temperate regions. It is the only extant family in the order Ceratophyllales. Species are commonly called coontails or hornworts, although hornwort is also used for unrelated plants of the division Anthocerotophyta.

<i>Cornus</i> Genus of flowering plants in the dogwood family Cornaceae

Cornus is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods or cornels, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrubs, but a few species are nearly herbaceous perennial subshrubs, and some species are evergreen. Several species have small heads of inconspicuous flowers surrounded by an involucre of large, typically white petal-like bracts, while others have more open clusters of petal-bearing flowers. The various species of dogwood are native throughout much of temperate and boreal Eurasia and North America, with China, Japan, and the southeastern United States being particularly rich in native species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nyssaceae</span> Family of trees

Nyssaceae is a family of flowering trees sometimes included in the dogwood family (Cornaceae). Nyssaceae is composed of 37 known species in the following five genera:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunoniaceae</span> Family of woody plants

Cunoniaceae is a family of 27 genera and about 335 species of woody plants in the order Oxalidales, mostly found in the tropical and wet temperate regions of the Southern Hemisphere. The greatest diversity of genera are in Australia and Tasmania, New Guinea, and New Caledonia. The family is also present in Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Malesia, the islands of the South Pacific, Madagascar and surrounding islands. the family is absent from mainland Asia except from Peninsular Malaysia, and almost absent from mainland Africa apart from two species from Southern Africa. Several of the genera have remarkable disjunct ranges, found on more than one continent, e.g. Cunonia, EucryphiaWeinmannia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calycanthaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

The Calycanthaceae are a small family of flowering plants in the order Laurales. The family contains three genera and only 10 known species, restricted to warm temperate and tropical regions:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Menispermaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

Menispermaceae is a family of flowering plants. The alkaloid tubocurarine, a neuromuscular blocker and the active ingredient in the 'tube curare' form of the dart poison curare, is derived from the South American liana Chondrodendron tomentosum. Several other South American genera belonging to the family have been used to prepare the 'pot' and 'calabash' forms of curare. The family contains 78 genera with some 440 species, which are distributed throughout low-lying tropical areas with some species present in temperate and arid regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Altingiaceae</span> Family of flowering plants in the order Saxifragales

Altingiaceae is a small family of flowering plants in the order Saxifragales, consisting of wind-pollinated trees that produce hard, woody fruits containing numerous seeds. The fruits have been studied in considerable detail. They naturally occur in Central America, Mexico, eastern North America, the eastern Mediterranean, China, and tropical Asia. They are often cultivated as ornamentals and many produce valuable wood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tofieldiaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

Tofieldiaceae is a family of flowering plants in the monocot order Alismatales. The family is divided into four genera, which together comprise 28 known species. They are small, herbaceous plants, mostly of arctic and subarctic regions, but a few extend further south, and one genus is endemic to northern South America and Florida. Tofieldia pusilla is sometimes grown as an ornamental.

<i>Alangium</i> Genus of flowering plants

Alangium is a small genus of flowering plants. The genus is included either in a broad view of the dogwood family Cornaceae, or as the sole member of its own family Alangiaceae. Alangium has about 40 species, but some of the species boundaries are not entirely clear. The type species for Alangium is Alangium decapetalum, which is now treated as a subspecies of Alangium salviifolium. All of the species are shrubs or small trees, except the liana Alangium kwangsiense. A. chinense, A. platanifolium, and A. salviifolium are known in cultivation.

<i>Mastixia</i> Genus of trees

Mastixia is a genus of about 19 species of resinous evergreen trees, usually placed in the family Cornaceae. Its range extends from India through Southeast Asia and New Guinea to the Solomon Islands. Mastixia species have alternate or opposite simple broad leaves, many-flowered inflorescences, and blue to purple drupaceous fruits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iteaceae</span> Sweetspire family, of shrubs and small trees, in the order Saxifragales

Iteaceae is a flowering plant family of trees and shrubs native to the eastern USA, southeastern Africa, and south and Southeastern Asia. Some older taxonomic systems place the genus Itea in the family Grossulariaceae. The APG III system of 2009 includes the former Pterostemonaceae in Iteaceae. Consequently, it now has two genera with a total of 18 known species.

Diplopanax is a genus of flowering trees placed in the family Cornaceae or Nyssaceae. Its two known extant species inhabit the wet tropical mountains of Vietnam and southern China. They are broad-leaved evergreen trees with woody fruits and white or yellow flowers.

<i>Hydrostachys</i> Genus of flowering plants

Hydrostachys is a genus of about 22 species of flowering plants native to Madagascar and southern and central Africa. It is the only genus in the family Hydrostachyaceae. All species of Hydrostachys are aquatic, growing on rocks in fast-moving water. They have tuberous roots, usually pinnately compound leaves, and highly reduced flowers on dense spikes.

<i>Grubbia</i> Genus of plants

Grubbia is a genus of flowering plants. It is the sole genus in the family Grubbiaceae. The genus has three species, all endemic to the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa. They are shrubs that grow to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) tall, with tiny flowers and slender, leathery leaves. The fruit is a syncarp.

Suciacarpa is an extinct genus of asterid flowering plants in the order Cornales. It is known from the fossil species Suciacarpa starrii and Suciacarpa xiangae, both found in Western North America.

References

Cornus sanguinea (MHNT) Cornus sanguinea - Inflorescence.jpg
Cornus sanguinea
  1. 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 .
  2. Kubitzki, K. (2004). Cornaceae. In The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants Volume 6: Flowering Plants: Dicotyledons: Celastrales, Oxidales, Rosales, Cornales, Ericales (Kubitzki, ed.). Springer-Verlag, New York.
  3. Heywood, V.H.; Brummitt, R.K.; Culham, A.; Seberg; O. (2007). Flowering Plant Families of the World. Buffalo, New York: Firefly Books. p. 112. ISBN   9781842461655.
  4. Eyde, R. H. (1988). Comprehending Cornus - puzzles and progress in the systematics of the dogwoods. Botanical Review54, 233-351.
  5. 1 2 Fan, C. Z., and Xiang, Q. Y. (2003). Phylogenetic analyses of Cornales based on 26S rRNA and combined 26S rDNA-matK-rbcL sequence data. American Journal of Botany90, 1357-1372.
  6. 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 . hdl: 10654/18083 .
  7. The Timetree of Life edited by S. Blair Hedges and Sudhir Kumar, OUP Oxford, 23. apr. 2009 - 576 pages, ISBN   0191560154, 9780191560156.
  8. Takahashi, M.; Crane, P.R.; Manchester, S.R. (2002). "Hironoia fusiformis gen. et sp. nov.; a cornalean fruit from the Kamikitaba locality (Upper Cretaceous, Lower Coniacian) in northeastern Japan". Journal of Plant Research. 115 (6): 463–473. doi:10.1007/s10265-002-0062-6.

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