Caryophyllales

Caryophyllales
Dianthus caryophyllus
Dianthus caryophyllus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
(unranked): Core eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Perleb
Suborders

Caryophyllineae
Polygonineae

Synonyms

Centrospermae

Caryophyllales is an order of flowering plants that includes the cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and most carnivorous plants. Many members are succulent, having fleshy stems or leaves.

Contents

Description

The Caryophyllales includes about 6% of dicot species.[1] This order is considered a core eudicot, which is also referred to as the core tricolpates. [2] Currently, the Caryophyllales contains 33 families, 692 genera and 11,155 species. [3] The monophyly of the Caryophyllales has been supported by DNA sequences, cytochrome c sequence data and heritable characters such as anther wall development and vessel-elements with simple perforations. [4]

Circumscription

As with all taxa, the circumscription of the Caryophyllales has changed within various classification systems. All systems recognize a core of families with centrospermous ovules and seeds. More recent treatments have expanded the Caryophyllales to include most carnivorous plants.

Although the monophyly of the order has been strongly supported, their placement is still uncertain. Systematists are undecided on whether Caryophyllales should be placed within the rosid complex or sister to the asterid clade. [4] Caryophyllales is separated into 2 sub-orders: Caryophyllineae and Polygonineae. [4] These two sub-orders were formerly (and sometimes still are) recognized as two orders, the Polygonales and Caryophyllales. [4]

APG II

As circumscribed by the APG II system (2003), this order includes well-known plants like cacti, carnations, spinach, beet, rhubarb, sundews, venus fly traps, and bougainvillea. Recent molecular and biochemical evidence has resolved additional well-supported clades within the Caryophyllales.

  • family Achatocarpaceae
  • family Aizoaceae
  • family Amaranthaceae
  • family Ancistrocladaceae
  • family Asteropeiaceae
  • family Barbeuiaceae
  • family Basellaceae
  • family Cactaceae
  • family Caryophyllaceae
  • family Didiereaceae
  • family Dioncophyllaceae
  • family Droseraceae
  • family Drosophyllaceae
  • family Frankeniaceae
  • family Gisekiaceae
  • family Halophytaceae
  • family Molluginaceae
  • family Nepenthaceae
  • family Nyctaginaceae
  • family Physenaceae
  • family Phytolaccaceae
  • family Plumbaginaceae
  • family Polygonaceae
  • family Portulacaceae
  • family Rhabdodendraceae
  • family Sarcobataceae
  • family Simmondsiaceae
  • family Stegnospermataceae
  • family Tamaricaceae

APG

Carnegiea gigantea
Sweet William Dwarf from the family Caryophyllaceae

This represents a slight change from the APG system, of 1998

Cronquist

Chenopodium album

The Cronquist system (1981) also recognised the order, with this circumscription:

The difference with the order as recognized by APG lies in the first place in the concept of "order". The APG favours much larger orders and families, and the order Caryophyllales sensu APG should rather be compared to subclass Caryophyllidae sensu Cronquist.

A part of the difference lies with what families are recognized. The plants in the Stegnospermataceae and Barbeuiaceae were included in Cronquist's Phytolaccaceae. The Chenopodiaceae (still recognized by Cronquist) are included in Amaranthaceae by APG.

New to the order (sensu APG) are the Asteropeiaceae and Physenaceae, each containing a single genus, and two genera from Cronquist's order Nepenthales.

Earlier circumscriptions

Earlier systems, such as the Wettstein system, last edition in 1935, and the Engler system, updated in 1964, had a similar order under the name Centrospermae.

References

  1. Caryophyllales
  2. Judd. W., Campbell, C., Kellog, E., Stevens, P. & M. Donoghue. (2008). Plant Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach, Third Edition. Sinauer Associates, Inc. Sunderland, MA
  3. Stephens, P.F. (2001). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 8, June 2007.http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/Research/APweb/
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Juan et al (2007). Electrophoretic characterization of Amaranthus L. seed proteins and its systematic implication. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 155: 57-63.