Sphaerocarpaceae is a
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
of
liverworts known as bottle liverworts. Approximately ten species are included in this family, most of them in the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
''
Sphaerocarpos
''Sphaerocarpos'' is a genus of plants known as bottle liverworts. There are eight or nine species in this genus.
Classification
''Sphaerocarpos'' is one of two extant genera in the famly Sphaerocarpaceae. The following species are currently r ...
'', but one additional species in the genus ''
Geothallus''.
Distribution
The majority of species in the family occur along the western edge of the Americas, from Washington to central Chile.
However, the type species for ''Sphaerocarpos'',
''S. michelii'', is native to Europe. The weedy species ''
Sphaerocarpos texanus'' is distributed widely in fields and gardens of North America, western Europe, and Mediterranean Africa. It may have been introduced with soil brought with crops or garden plants imported from the Americas.
Classification
The group was recognized as a tribe by
Barthélemy Dumortier in 1874
and elevated to family rank in 1891 by
Moritz Heeg, under the name "Sphaerocarpeae".
Two extant
genera are recognized, with a single species in ''Geothallus'' and the remaining species assigned to ''Sphaerocarpos''
Species
* ''
Geothallus tuberosus''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos cristatus''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos donnellii''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos drewiae''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos hians''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos michelii''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos stipitatus''
* ''
Sphaerocarpos texanus''
References
External links
Pictures of ''Sphaerocarpos texanus''
Sphaerocarpales
Liverwort families
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