Spermatophyta: Dicotyledonae: Archichlamydeae: Ceratophyllales

Ceratophyllaceae - Hornwort family

Wilmot-Dear, C.M. (1991) Ceratophyllaceae Flora Zambesiaca 9(6)

Description of the family

Submerged, aquatic, monoecious herbs without roots. Stipules 0. Leaves in whorls, filiform, regularly forked into linear segments, often rigid or brittle, with spiny teeth on the margin; apical segments truncate, 2-spined at the apex with a reddish glandular projection between the spines (basal segments sometimes parasitised and becoming swollen and sac-like).Flowers actinomorphic, hypogynous, axillary, 1-several at each node; male and female flowers at separate nodes, ± sessile. Perianth lobes 6-13, united at base; margin often with a single lateral spine or ± lacerate; apex as leaf apex. Male flowers with numerous stamens. Female flowers: staminodes 0; ovary superior, tapering into a long style; ovule 1. Fruit a nut.

Worldwide: 1 genus and 2-6 species, cosmopolitan.

Mozambique: 1 genus and 3 taxa.

Ceratophyllum demersum var. demersum

Links to genera:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this family

GenusContent
Ceratophyllum L.Description, Image

Other sources of information about Ceratophyllaceae:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Ceratophyllaceae
Flora of Caprivi: Ceratophyllaceae
Flora of Malawi: Ceratophyllaceae
Flora of Zambia: Ceratophyllaceae
Flora of Zimbabwe: Ceratophyllaceae

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Ceratophyllaceae
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
GRIN (Germplasm Resources Information Network) taxonomy for plants report for Ceratophyllaceae
Wikipedia: Ceratophyllaceae


Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave 2007-23

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2023). Flora of Mozambique: Family page: Ceratophyllaceae.
https://www.mozambiqueflora.com/speciesdata/family.php?family_id=54, retrieved 23 March 2023

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