Lindsaeaceae is a

pantropical A pantropical ("all tropics") distribution is one which covers tropical regions of both the Eastern and Western hemispheres. Examples of species include caecilians, modern sirenians and the plant genera ''Acacia'' and ''Bacopa''. ''Neotropical' ...

family of ferns in the order

Polypodiales The Order (biology), order Polypodiales encompasses the major lineages of polypod ferns, which comprise more than 80% of today's fern species. They are found in many parts of the world including Tropics, tropical, semitropical and Temperate clima ...

. It contains six or seven genera with about 220 known species, some of which also extend into the more temperate regions of eastern Asia, New Zealand, and South America.Lehtonen ''et al.'': Phylogenetics and classification of the pantropical fern family Lindsaeaceae
in the ''Botanical Journal of the Linnaen Society'' 2010

Description

Characteristics include: Rhizomes short to long creeping; rhizomes with nonclathrate scales or uniseriate hairs; blades 1-3 pinnate or more divided; veins usually free; sori marginal or submarginal; indusia open towards margin, sometimes attached at sides, or sori covered by the reflexed segment margin.

Taxonomy

For more than a century, these ferns were considered part of the Davalliaceae. Then starting in the mid-twentieth century they began to be transferred to the

Dennstaedtiaceae Dennstaedtiaceae is one of fifteen families in the order Polypodiales, the most derived families within fern, monilophytes (ferns). It comprises 10 genera with ca 240 known species, including one of the world's most abundant ferns, ''Pteridium aq ...

. Molecular data supported the separation of Lindsaeaceae into its own family, which was proposed in 1970. Lindsaeaceae is considered among the most basal of the families in the order Polypodiales. The genus ''Lonchitis'' has many morphological characteristics similar to

, but a few characteristics of the spore are similar to the lindsaeoid genera, and molecular data placed this genus in Lindsaeaceae. It is now placed in the related family Lonchitidaceae. The

Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group The Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group (PPG) is an informal international group of systematic botanists who collaborate to establish on the classification of pteridophytes ( lycophytes and ferns) that reflects knowledge about plant relationships discove ...

classification of 2016 (PPG I) recognized seven genera. *''

Lindsaea ''Lindsaea'', common name necklace fern, is a genus of around 180 species of fern, 15 of which reach Australia. The name is in honour of surgeon John Lindsay of Jamaica. The genus is sometimes spelt ''Lindsaya''. Species , the ''Checklist of Fer ...

'' Dryand. ex Sm. (about 180 species) *'' × Lindsaeosoria'' Wagner (1 species) *'' Nesolindsaea'' Lehtonen & Christenh. (2 species) *'' Odontosoria'' Fée (about 23 species) *'' Osmolindsaea'' (K.U.Kramer) Lehtonen & Christenh. (about 7 species) *'' Sphenomeris'' Maxon (3 species) *'' Tapeinidium'' (C.Presl) C.Chr. (18 species) *'' Xyropteris'' K.U.Kramer (1 species) Other sources retain ''Xyropteris'' in ''Lindsaea''. The extinct genus '' Proodontosoria'' from the

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...

aged

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...

of Myanmar has been assigned to the family. Other fossil remains assigned to the family include an indeterminate leaf fragment also from the Burmese amber, as well as a permineralized root from the

Albian The Albian is both an age (geology), age of the geologic timescale and a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch/s ...

aged Aspen Shale of

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

. Other genera that have been placed in the Lindsaeaceae are: *'' Lonchitis'' L. – transferred to its own family Lonchitidaceae *'' Saccoloma'' Kaulf. – transferred to its own family Saccolomataceae *'' Cystodium'' J.Sm. – transferred to its own family Cystodiaceae

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1600094 Fern families Pantropical flora