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Synonyms: Boweniaceae D. W. Stev.
Common name: Stangeria Family.
Number of genera 2. Number of species 3 (Bowenia serrulate (W. Bull) Chamb., B. spectablilis Hook. ex Hook. f., Stangeria eriopus (Kunze) Baill.).
Gymnosperm.
Disseminule a cone, or a seed.
Cones
Cone dry; when dry simple; elliptical, or globose, or ovoid; symmetrical; with sporophylls; with scalelike sporophylls. Fruiting scalelike sporophylls compacted tightly.
Seeds
Aril absent. Seed larger than minute; 10 to less than 25 mm long, or 25 to less than 50 mm long; 25–35 mm long; angular, or oblong, or ovate; in transection terete; not bowl shaped; not nutlike; without winglike beak; without caudate appendage(s); at maturity with food reserves; with endosperm; without canavanine. Sarcotesta present; fleshy. Testa present; with fleshy or leathery layer over hard layer; tight; surface smooth (but with a plate); without crease or line separating cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle; without notch along margin where cotyledons from hypocotyl-radicle tip approach each other; without glands; without bristles; glabrous; without wings; without collar; without operculum; colored; monochrome; purple (ish), or red, or yellow (ish); not becoming mucilaginous when wetted; surrounding food reserve. Endosperm copious; without fatty acid containing cyclopropene; without apical lobes; without chlorophyll; without isodiametric faceted surface; without odor.
Embryo differentiated from food reserve; well developed; partially filling testa (with food reserve); at one end of seed not extending into a depression or cup; without coleorhiza; without simmondsin; without stomata; not green; with 2 or more cotyledons. Cotyledons 2; equal in size; not punctate dotted.
Distribution
Old World. South Africa and southeastern Asia.
Notes
Dyer (1966): "Female cones stalked; bulla with slightly convex peltate face, imbricate upward, irregularly toothed on margin". Female cones 8–12 cm long, barrel-shaped to ellipsoid, brownish-green.
Weed information
No USA noxious weeds.
Listed seeds
No ASOA or ISTA listed seeds.
Accepted genera
Bowenia Hook. f. -- Stangeria T. Moore
References specific to this family
Cronquist page 0 (not present). Dyer, R.A. 1966. Stangeriaceae. In: L.E. Codd, B. de Winter, & H.B. Rycroft, eds., Flora of southern Africa,vol.1, pp. 1–3. Cape & Transvaal Printers Ltd., South Africa; Jones, D.L. 1993. Cycads of the world. Reed New Holland, Sydney; Stevenson, D.W. 1990. Morphology and systematics of the Cycadales. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 57:8–55.
General references
Flora of Australia (various years and volumes). Australian Government Publication, Canberra, Gunn, C.R., J.H. Wiersema, C.A. Ritchie, and J.H. Kirkbride, Jr. 1992 and amendments. Families and genera of Spermatophytes recognized by the Agricultural Research Service. Techn. Bull. U.S.D.A. 1796:1–500, Mabberley, D.J. 1987. The plant-book, 706 p. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, Johnson, L.A.S. and K.L. Wilson. 1990. Cycadophytina/Cycadatae with the single living order Cycadales (Cycads). In: Kubitzki, K., ed., The families and genera of vascular plants, pp. 362–377. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Illustrations
Acceptable simple cone & S illustrations. Disseminule illustration(s): "cone", or seed, or embryo. Illustrated "cone": simple cone. "Cone" illustration(s): Dyer (1966). (US) color photo. Seed illustration(s): (US) color photo, Karen. Embryo illustration(s): Karen. Karen's plate number and taxon (taxa): 401: Stangeria eriopus (Kune) Nash (A-B).
• Seed. 1 of 4. Stangeria eriopus (Kunze) Baill.: fruit with 2 seeds. • Embryo. 2 of 4. Stangeria eriopus (Kunze) Baill.: embryo. • Embryo. 3 of 4. Bowenia spectabilis Hook. ex Hook. f.: embryo. • Embryo. 4 of 4. Stangeria eriopus (Kunze) Baill.: embryo.
We advise against extracting comparative information from the descriptions. This is much more easily achieved using the DELTA data files or the interactive key, which allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa. See also Guidelines for using data taken from Web publications.
Cite this publication as: ‘J.H. Kirkbride, Jr., C.R. Gunn, and M.J. Dallwitz. 2000 onwards. Family guide for fruits and seeds: descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval. Version: 12th April 2021. delta-intkey.com’.
