Triuridaceae are a family of tropical and subtropical

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s, including nine genera with a total of approximately 55 known species. All members lack chlorophyll and are mycoheterotrophic (obtain food by digesting intracellular fungi, often erroneously called 'saprophytes'). The heterotrophic lifestyle of these plants has resulted in a loss of xylem vessels and stomata, and a reduction of leaves to scales. The flowers of Triuridaceae have tepals which are fused at the base and contain 10 to many free carpels.

Systematics

The circumscription of Triuridaceae has been unstable and some taxa may be paraphyletic. Triuridaceae have been allied with Alismataceae (based on the free carpels) but the

APG III system The APG III system of flowering plant classification is the third version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy being developed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG). Published in 2009, it was superseded in 2016 by a f ...

(2009) places them among the non-commelinid monocots, in the Order Pandanales. The genus ''Lacandonia'' is sometimes placed in its own family, Lacandoniaceae. Triuridaceae are included in the Kew Royal Botanical Garden World Checklist of Selected Plant Families and were reviewed by H. Maas-van de Kamer and P. Maas-van de Kamer in 2005. In this list, the genera '' Andruris'' and '' Hyalisma'' are subsumed into ''Sciaphila'' and '' Hexuris'' is subsumed into ''Peltophyllum'', but two new genera '' Kupea'' and '' Kihansia'' are included. Both genera were described (and placed in Triuridaceae) in 2003. '' Mabelia'' and '' Nuhliantha'' are fossil genera that were both described in 2002 from the

Turonian The Turonian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS' geologic timescale, the second age (geology), age in the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch, or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the Upper Cretaceous series (stratigraphy), ...

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. The included genera therefore are: *'' Kihansia'' Cheek *'' Kupea'' Cheek & S.A.Williams *'' Lacandonia'' E.Martínez & Ramos *†'' Mabelia'' Gandolfo, Nixon et Crepet *†'' Nuhliantha'' Gandolfo, Nixon et Crepet *'' Peltophyllum'' Gardner (syn. ''Hexuris'' Miers) *'' Sciaphila'' Blume (syn. ''Hyalisma'' Champion) *'' Seychellaria'' Hemsl. *'' Soridium'' Miers *'' Triuridopsis'' H.Maas & Maas *'' Triuris'' Miers

Systematics

References

External links