Salviniaceae - Kariba weed family

Photo: MA. Hyde
Zimbabwe

 

Description of the family

Free-floating aquatic plants. Rhizome slender, branched, roots absent or simple, borne singly or in fascicles. Leaves either dimorphic, borne in whorls of three (Salvinia) or alternate in 2 rows ( Azolla); veins free or anastomosing. Sporangia in thin-walled sporocarps on submerged leaves or in axils of submerged lobes; heterosporous.

Worldwide: 2 genera and c. 16 species, mostly tropical

 

Genera

  • Azolla Lam.
  • Salvinia Ség.
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    Literature

  • Crouch, N.R., Klopper, R.R., Burrows, J.E. & Burrows, S.M.2011Ferns of Southern Africa, A comprehensive guide. Struik Nature.
  • Jacobsen, W.B.G.1983The Ferns and Fern Allies of Southern Africa. Butterworths, Durban and Pretoria.
  • Roux, J.P.2001Conspectus of Southern African Pteridophyta. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report, 13: 1-222.
  • Schelpe, E.A.C.L.E.1970Pteridophyta. Flora Zambesiaca, 0: 1-254.

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