Azolla mexicana, the Mexican mosquito fern,[3] is an aquatic fern native to Mexico, British Columbia and the western United States (California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, and Nevada).[4]
| Azolla mexicana | |
|---|---|
| |
| Drawing circa 1905[1] | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Division: | Polypodiophyta |
| Class: | Polypodiopsida |
| Order: | Salviniales |
| Family: | Salviniaceae |
| Genus: | Azolla |
| Species: | A. mexicana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Azolla mexicana | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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There are reports of the species also occurring in the Great Plains of the central United States, but these reports need further study for verification.[4]
Description
editAzolla mexicana is a floating aquatic with blue-green to dark red leaves. It is distinguished from the two other species of the genus present in North America, Azolla caroliniana and Azolla filiculoides, by having multicellular hairs on the leaves and pits on the megaspores.[5][6][7]
References
edit- ^ Hippolyte Coste - Flore descriptive et illustrée de la France, de la Corse et des contrées limitrophes, 1901-1906 - - This image is in public domain because its copyright has expired
- ^ Tropicos
- ^ NRCS. "Azolla mexicana". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 11 August 2016.
- ^ a b Flora of North America Azolla mexicana
- ^ Svenson, H. K. 1944. The New World species of Azolla. American Fern Journal 34: 69--84.
- ^ Zimmerman, W. J., T. A. Lumpkin, and I. Watanabe. 1989. Classification of Azolla spp., section Azolla. Euphytica 43: 223--232.
- ^ Kunze, Gustav. Linnaea 18(3): 352. 1845.
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