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Seagrass family
Zosteraceae
アマモ科
One of the few flowering plants fully adapted to the marine environment. Zostera marina and Z. japonica are widely distributed in Japan, forming seagrass beds in sheltered bays that serve as habitats for diverse marine organisms. Has evolved submarine pollination.
Key Characteristics
- ●Fully submerged marine plants
- ●Linear leaves with sheathing bases, spreading across the seafloor via rhizomes
- ●Flowers reduced, lacking petals and sepals
- ●Filamentous pollen drifts through water for submarine pollination
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Parallel
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Herb
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Ovary position
Superior
Plant sex
Dioecious / Monoecious
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Monocots > Alismatales > Zosteraceae
Divergence Era
Latest Cretaceous to Paleogene (ca. 70 Ma onwards)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Complete secondary adaptation from terrestrial to marine environments (evolution of seagrass)
- ・Evolution of a unique pollination system with submarine pollination and filamentous pollen
Plants in Seagrass family on this site
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