Studies on reproductive biology of a threatened tree fern, Cyathea spinulosa Wall. ex Hook

被引:0
|
作者
Khare, PB [1 ]
Behera, SK [1 ]
Srivastava, R [1 ]
Shukla, SP [1 ]
机构
[1] Natl Bot Res Inst, Pteridol Lab, Lucknow 226001, Uttar Pradesh, India
来源
CURRENT SCIENCE | 2005年 / 89卷 / 01期
关键词
D O I
暂无
中图分类号
O [数理科学和化学]; P [天文学、地球科学]; Q [生物科学]; N [自然科学总论];
学科分类号
07 ; 0710 ; 09 ;
摘要
Cyathea spinulosa Wall. ex Hook. is a highly-prized ornamental and economic tree fern and a significant component of tropical forests in southern, central and northern India. Currently, it is under threatened status and listed in the Red Data Books. Since the successful colonization of a fern in new habitats is dependent on gametophyte generation, the present study was conducted to observe the reproductive biology of the species. Sex ontogeny showed male gametophytes to hermaphrodite condition and the gametophytes remained bisexual for considerable period of time. Regeneration of gametophyte was common; the regenerated portions bore both sexes and produced sporophytes extensively. The reproductive behaviour revealed considerable success in sporophyte production through intragametophytic selfing. This shows that the species is of lesser genetic diversity and the gene pool is charged with lesser amount of genetic load, and is a good colonizer. In contrast, the taxon is under threatened status. The cause of this and the probable mode of conservation are also discussed here.
引用
收藏
页码:173 / 177
页数:5
相关论文
共 50 条