Abstract
The present study provides a comparative morphological analysis of spikes in different Indian species of Selaginella. The salient features of spikes including their types and also the shape and margin of sporophylls of the closely related taxa are characteristically useful in taxonomic delineation. We have used the term Leaf-flap, for the first time, and the Sporophyll-pteryx to denote the occurrence of vertical/oblique projection on the dorsal surface of leaf and sporophyll, respectively. The shape and colour of both mega- and micro-sporangia are also helpful in taxonomy; however, their size is not much significant as these are variable within the same spike of the species. A new pattern of sporangial distribution is being reported for the first time in the spike of S. plana (Desv. ex Poir.) Hieron.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to the Head of Department of Botany for providing laboratory facilities. Our thanks are also due to Dr. Santosh Nampy and Dr. P. Nisha, St. Joseph’s College Devagiri, Kozhikode, Kerala, India, for their consistent help in identification of material (Selaginella). We wish to express our gratitude to Prof. D. K. Chauhan, late Dr. S. P. Tiwari, University of Allahabad, Allahabad and Dr. S. N. Srivastava, CMP College, Allahabad, for their valuable suggestions and support. The first and second authors are also thankful to the University Grant Commission for providing research fellowships.
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Singh, S.K., Yadav, B.B., Srivastava, M. et al. Comparative morphological studies on spikes of Indian Selaginella Beauv.. Plant Syst Evol 300, 1235–1245 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-013-0958-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-013-0958-8