Menyanthaceae 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 aquatic and wetland plants in the order

Asterales Asterales () is an order of dicotyledonous flowering plants that includes the large family Asteraceae (or Compositae) known for composite flowers made of florets, and ten families related to the Asteraceae. While asterids in general are charact ...

. There are approximately 60-70 species in six

genera 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 nomenclat ...

distributed worldwide. The simple or compound

leaves A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

arise alternately from a creeping

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow ...

. In the submersed aquatic genus '' Nymphoides'', leaves are floating and support a lax,

umbel In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...

late or

racemose A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are forme ...

. In other genera the inflorescence is erect and consists of one (e.g., ''

Liparophyllum ''Liparophyllum'' is a genus of aquatic flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae. The name ''Liparophyllum'' comes from the Greek words ''liparos'', meaning "fat, shiny or oily", and ''phyllon'', meaning "leaf". They are rhizomatous wetlan ...

'') to many flowers. The

sympetalous Sympetaly (fused petals) is a flower characteristic that historically was used to classify a grouping of plants termed Sympetalae, but this term has been abandoned in newer molecular based classifications, although the grouping has similarity to ...

insect-pollinated Entomophily or insect pollination is a form of pollination whereby pollen of plants, especially but not only of flowering plants, is distributed by insects. Flowers pollinated by insects typically advertise themselves with bright colours, ...

flowers are five-parted and either yellow or white. The petals are

ciliate The ciliates are a group of alveolates characterized by the presence of hair-like organelles called cilia, which are identical in structure to eukaryotic flagella, but are in general shorter and present in much larger numbers, with a differen ...

or adorned with lateral wings. Fruit type is a capsule. Species of Menyanthaceae are found worldwide. The genera ''

Menyanthes ''Menyanthes'' is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae containing the single species ''Menyanthes trifoliata''. The North American form is often referred to as ''M. trifoliata'' var. ''minor'' Michx. It is known ...

'' and ''

Nephrophyllidium ''Nephrophyllidium'' is a monotypic genus of aquatic flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae. The sole species is ''Nephrophyllidium crista-galli''. They are wetland plants with basal reniform and crenate leaves. Flowers are five-parted ...

'' grow only in the northern hemisphere, while ''

'' and ''

Villarsia ''Villarsia'' is a genus of aquatic flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae. The genus is named for the French botanist Dominique Villars (1745–1814). ''Villarsia'' are wetland plants with basal leaves. The inflorescence is a branche ...

'' occur only in the southern hemisphere. '' Nymphoides'' species have a

cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, cosmopolitan distribution is the term for the range of a taxon that extends across all or most of the world in appropriate habitats. Such a taxon, usually a species, is said to exhibit cosmopolitanism or cosmopolitism. The extr ...

. Menyanthaceae species are of economic importance as ornamental water garden plants, with '' Nymphoides'' being most commonly traded. The practice of growing non-native water plants has led to several species becoming

naturalized Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

or invasive. Dimorphic

heterostyly Heterostyly is a unique form of polymorphism and herkogamy in flowers. In a heterostylous species, two or three morphological types of flowers, termed "morphs", exist in the population. On each individual plant, all flowers share the same morph ...

occurs in all genera but ''

''. In addition, four species of '' Nymphoides'' are

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproducti ...

Genera

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

accepts the following genera: * ''

'' Hook.f. * ''

'' L. * ''

'' Gilg * '' Nymphoides'' Ség. * ''

Ornduffia ''Ornduffia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Menyanthaceae Menyanthaceae is a family of aquatic and wetland plants in the order Asterales. There are approximately 60-70 species in six genera distributed worldwide. The simple o ...

'' Tippery & Les * ''

'' Vent.

References

External links

Menyanthaceae of Mongolia in FloraGREIF
{{Authority control Asterales families