Isoetes
Genus of vascular plants in the family Isoetaceae / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Quillwort?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Isoetes, commonly known as the quillworts, is a genus of lycopod. It is the only living genus in the family Isoetaceae and order Isoetales. There are currently 192 recognized species,[1] with a cosmopolitan distribution mostly in aquatic habitats but with the individual species often scarce to rare. Some botanists split the genus, separating two South American species into the genus Stylites, although molecular data place these species among other species of Isoetes, so that Stylites does not warrant taxonomic recognition.[2] Species virtually identical to modern quillworts have existed since the Jurassic epoch,[3] though the timing of the origin of modern Isoetes is subject to considerable uncertainty.[4]
Isoetes | |
---|---|
Isoetes tegetiformans with U.S. penny for scale | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Lycophytes |
Class: | Lycopodiopsida |
Order: | Isoetales |
Family: | Isoetaceae |
Genus: | Isoetes L. |
Species | |
See text |
The name of the genus may also be spelled Isoëtes. The diaeresis (two dots over the e) indicates that the o and the e are to be pronounced in two distinct syllables. Including this in print is optional; either spelling (Isoetes or Isoëtes) is correct.[5]