Sarraceniaceae
Sarracenia oreophila
The Pitcher plants ( Sarraceniaceae ) are a family from the order of heather -like ( Ericales ) with three genera in about twenty species. All species are neuweltlich and carnivorous plants ( carnivorous or präkarnivor ).
Description
All species are perennial, herbaceous plants, mostly in a basal rosette, occasionally ( Heliamphora ), alternate, arranged from a rhizome out on an upright stem axis, forming tubular leaves that serve as traps for the insect trap.
The leaves are provided with a short petiole, stipules absent. They are converted into complex, more or less elongated, tubular, often can -like traps that are filled with a digestive fluid and on their page achszugewandter a single or double wing bar (Ala) runs. At the far end of the achsabgewandten page sets to a common dome -like appendage, the opening of the blade is surrounded by a more or less clearly delimited peristome. On their outer and inner surface of the leaves are covered with specialized glands. Occasionally, phyllodes.
The flowers are mostly radial symmetry as a single bloom on a terminal inflorescence, occasionally ( Heliamphora ) as wenigblütige, achselbürtige grape. Bracteoles there are only Heliamphora. The flowers are either kronblattartiger from four to six, rarely threefold bloom cladding shape ( Heliamphora ) or they are differentiated into two petal circles, the sepals are then permanently, the petals are dropped and are striking. The ten to twenty or numerous stamens have short stamens, the ovary is upper constant, five or rarely dreifächrig. The fruits are capsules containing numerous small winged seeds.
Dissemination
Pitcher plants are purely neuweltlich. Pitcher plants are found in the east to southeastern North America, the cobra lily in the northeastern United States and the marsh pitchers in the high plains of the border region between Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana and Venezuela in the adjacent Gran Sabana. All species colonize nutrient-poor sites.
Systematics and phylogenetics
The couple have three genera with about 25 species:
- Pitcher plants ( Sarracenia )
- Marsh pitchers ( Heliamphora )
- Cobra Lily ( Darlingtonia )
Molecular genetic studies revealed surprising results for the classification of Pitcher plants. Firstly, it was found that the hose plants themselves are not a sister taxon of the cobra lily, but form a clade with the South American marsh pitchers. On the other hand, there was a close relationship with the präkarnivoren plant bugs from South Africa.
Bugs plants ( Roridula )
Cobra Lily ( Darlingtonia )
Marsh pitchers ( Heliamphora )
Pitcher plants ( Sarracenia )
Paleobotany
1998/2001 fossils were discovered as a 2005 Archaeamphora longicervia described plant in China, which can be detected with high probability to the hose plant crops. The condition and the completeness of the finds (only flower, fruit and root system were missing) reinforces this interpretation. With their age of 125 million years, it represents one of the oldest known angiosperms and by far the oldest known carnivorous plant.