Apostasioideae
Encyclopedia
In plant systematics Apostasioideae is one of the five subfamilies recognised within the orchid family, Orchidaceae
. Only two genera
, Neuwidia and Apostasia
and 15 species
are recognised within the Apostasioideae in contrast to the other orchid subfamilies which are highly speciose.
The Apostasioideae are generally considered a basal lineage within the orchids based on molecular data and flower structure. All other orchid subfamilies with the exception of the Cypripedioideae are monandrous
(possessing a single stamen
), however Apostasiod orchids have 3 stamens.
As with all basal or 'primitive' groups, extant species within Apostasioideae do not represent direct ancestors of the other subfamilies, they simply share the same common ancestor. However, by having followed a separate evolutionary pathway from the other orchids extant Apostasioid orchids may allow us to make inferences about features present in that common ancestor.
Orchidaceae
The Orchidaceae, commonly referred to as the orchid family, is a morphologically diverse and widespread family of monocots in the order Asparagales. Along with the Asteraceae, it is one of the two largest families of flowering plants, with between 21,950 and 26,049 currently accepted species,...
. Only two genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
, Neuwidia and Apostasia
Apostasia orchid
Apostasia is a genus of primitive orchids , comprising 7 terrestrial species.The genus is distributed in humid areas of the Himalayan region, India, Sri Lanka, New Guinea, and North Australia....
and 15 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are recognised within the Apostasioideae in contrast to the other orchid subfamilies which are highly speciose.
The Apostasioideae are generally considered a basal lineage within the orchids based on molecular data and flower structure. All other orchid subfamilies with the exception of the Cypripedioideae are monandrous
Monandrous
- In orchids :A distinction between monandrous and other flowers is particularly relevant in the classification of orchids. The monandrous orchids form a clade consisting of the subfamilies Orchidoideae, Vanilloideae, and Epidendroideae. The other subfamilies, Apostasioideae and Cypripedioideae,...
(possessing a single stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
), however Apostasiod orchids have 3 stamens.
As with all basal or 'primitive' groups, extant species within Apostasioideae do not represent direct ancestors of the other subfamilies, they simply share the same common ancestor. However, by having followed a separate evolutionary pathway from the other orchids extant Apostasioid orchids may allow us to make inferences about features present in that common ancestor.