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Pondweed family
Potamogetonaceae
ヒルムシロ科
A freshwater aquatic monocot family. Many species including Potamogeton, P. crispus, and P. oxyphyllus are native to Japan, found in ponds, rivers, and rice paddies.
Key Characteristics
- ●Submerged or floating aquatic plants
- ●Leaves linear to elliptical; some species with dimorphic submerged and floating leaves
- ●Spicate inflorescences emerge above the water surface (wind-pollinated)
- ●Flowers reduced, with 4 tepals
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate / Opposite / Whorled
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Parallel / Pinnate / Palmate
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Herb
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Stipules
Present / Absent
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic
Petal count
4 petals
Petal fusion
Free
Ovary position
Superior
Plant sex
Hermaphrodite
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Monocots > Alismatales > Potamogetonaceae
Divergence Era
Latest Cretaceous to Paleogene (ca. 70 Ma onwards)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Advanced adaptation to freshwater aquatic environments and establishment of submerged life form
- ・Transition to wind pollination and simplification of floral parts
Plants in Pondweed family on this site
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