Dichorisandrinae

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Cladus: Commelinids
Ordo: Commelinaless

Familia: Commelinaceae
Subfamilia: Commelinoideae
Tribus: Tradescantieae
Subtribus: Dichorisandrinae
Genera: Cochliostema – Dichorisandra – Geogenanthus – Plowmanianthus – Siderasis
Name

Dichorisandrinae Faden & D.R.Hunt Taxon 40(1): 25. 1991.

Type genus: Dichorisandra J.C.Mikan, Del. Fl. Faun. Bras.: t. 3. 1820, nom. cons.

References

Faden, R.B. & Hunt, D.R. 1991. The classification of the Commelinaceae. Taxon 40(1): 19–31. JSTOR. Reference page.
Hardy, C.R. & Faden, R.B. 2004. Plowmanianthus, a New Genus of Commelinaceae with Five New Species from Tropical America. Systematic Botany 29(2): 316–333. DOI: 10.1600/036364404774195511 Paywall BioOne Paywall JSTOR Hybrid open access journal. Reference page.
Wade, R.M., Evans, T.M. & Faden, R.B. 2006. Subtribal relationships in tribe Tradescantieae (Commelinaceae) based on molecular and morphological data. Aliso 22(1): 520–526. ResearchGate Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2015. Dichorisandrinae. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 31 Aug 2015.

Dichorisandrinae is a subtribe within the tribe Tradescantieae of the flowering plant family Commelinaceae. It consists of 5 genera and around 51 species.

The subtribe represents a diverse assemblage native to tropical South America and a contiguous portion of Central America.[1] Not only is this subtribe remarkable for the range of morphological and ecological variation within it, but it also includes species that represent novel exceptions to the terrestrial habit, longitudinally-dehiscent anthers, and/or exarillate seeds typical of the family. Exceptional taxa include Dichorisandra, characterized by the unusual combination of a vining habit, poricidal anthers, and arillate seeds. Cochliostema is atypical in having an epiphytic habit and flowers with spirally-coiled anthers concealed in petaloid extensions of the filament. Geogenanthus is distinguished by a particular 6-celled stomatal complex and basal axillary inflorescences. Plowmanianthus consists of prostrate herbs shallowly rooted in the leaf-litter layer of rainforest floors, and the flowers of most Plowmanianthus species are primarily cleistogamous.[2]
Genera
Growth forms in Dichorisandrinae

Faden & Hunt's (1991) formal circumscription of the subtribe[1] did not include Plowmanianthus, which was then undescribed and poorly understood; Hardy & Faden added Plowmanianthus in 2004.[2] Members are perennial, primarily understory, herbaceous taxa united on the basis of chromosome morphology (generally large), a shared base chromosome number (x = 19), and a biseriate arrangement of seeds in each locule (two longitudinal files of seeds in each locule), although the seeds are uniseriate in Plowmanianthus.[2]

Cochliostema Lem. – 2 species
Dichorisandra Mik. – ca. 40 species
Geogenanthus Ule – 3 species
Plowmanianthus Faden & C.R.Hardy – 5 species
Siderasis Raf. – 1 species

References

Robert B. Faden & D. R. Hunt (1991). "The classification of the Commelinaceae". Taxon. 40 (1): 19–31. doi:10.2307/1222918. JSTOR 1222918.
C. R. Hardy & Robert B. Faden (2004). "Plowmanianthus, a new genus of Commelinaceae with five new species from tropical America". Systematic Botany. 29 (2): 316–333. doi:10.1600/036364404774195511.