Hippuris, the mare's tail, was previously the sole genus in the family Hippuridaceae. Following genetic research by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, it has now been transferred to the family Plantaginaceae, with Hippuridaceae being reduced to a synonym of Plantaginaceae.
| Hippuris | |
|---|---|
| |
| Common mare's tail (Hippuris vulgaris) from Thomé Flora von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz 1885 | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Plantaginaceae |
| Tribe: | Callitricheae |
| Genus: | Hippuris L. |
| Species | |
It includes one to three species depending on taxonomic interpretation. Some authorities only accept the first species of those listed below, treating the other two as synonyms of it:
- Common mare's tail, Hippuris vulgaris
- Mountain mare's tail, Hippuris montana
- Fourleaf mare's tail, Hippuris tetraphylla
They are aquatic plants found in shallow ponds and streams, both slow-moving and fast-flowing. Hippuris, despite being a flowering plant, is sometimes mistakenly identified with the non-flowering plant horsetail.
References
editExternal links
edit- Distribution map, description, and picture of H. vulgaris
- Description and picture of H. vulgaris Archived 2005-04-06 at the Wayback Machine
- Hippuridaceae of Mongolia in FloraGREIF Archived 2011-07-19 at the Wayback Machine
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