Haptanthaceae

Taxonomy

The sole species was first discovered in 1980 when a single specimen was collected by Donald L. Hazlett. It was described scientifically in 1989 by Goldberg and Nelson, as a new genus and species, Haptanthus hazlettii. Initially Goldberg and Nelson were unable to assign Haptanthus to a family. Nelson later placed it in its own family, Haptanthaceae. In 2005, an attempt was made to obtain DNA for sequencing from the only known specimen, but this failed. Based on an analysis of the morphology of the specimen, Doust and Stevens suggested that Haptanthus was possibly related to the Buxales. The APG III system of 2009 accepted the family Haptanthaceae, placing it in the order Buxales, along with the Buxaceae. The close relationship with the Buxaceae was confirmed in 2011 when DNA was successfully obtained from a newly collected specimen. Molecular phylogenetic analysis showed that Haptanthus belongs inside the family Buxaceae rather than in a family of its own. The APG IV system of 2016 includes Haptanthus in the family Buxaceae.