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She-oak family
Casuarinaceae
モクマオウ科
A family native to Australia and Southeast Asia. Casuarina equisetifolia is planted in Japan for windbreaks and sand stabilization. Has a distinctive morphology where leaves are reduced and photosynthesis is carried out by green, jointed branchlets (cladodes), giving a conifer-like appearance.
Key Characteristics
- ●Leaves are extremely reduced to small, whorled scales
- ●Slender green jointed branchlets (cladodes) perform photosynthesis
- ●Woody cone-like pseudofruits
- ●Frankia actinobacteria form root symbiosis for nitrogen fixation
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Whorled
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Shrub / Tree
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Stipules
Absent
Aromatic
Aromatic / None
Petal count
3 petals
Petal fusion
Free
Ovary position
Superior
Plant sex
Dioecious / Monoecious
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Fagales > Casuarinaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene (about 50–40 million years ago)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Leaf reduction and cladode development as adaptation to arid, nutrient-poor environments
- ・Independent acquisition of nitrogen-fixing symbiosis
Plants in She-oak family on this site
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