Land Plants Evolution on morphological, reproductive and molecular bases. Identification of the most important families to the Italian Flora (pteridophytes, gimnosperms and angiosperms). Botanical Nomenclature. Practival aspects of the identification.
Gifford E.M., Foster A.S. (1989), Morphology and Evolution of Vascular Plants. 3rd Ed., W.H.Freeman & Co., New York; Stuessy T.F. (2009), Plant Taxonomy. 2nd ed., Columbia University Press, New York; Simpson M.G. (2010), Plant Systematics. 2nd ed., Academic Press, Elsiever, USA. Further teaching tools are given especially for the second section of the course.
Learning Objectives
Knowledge acquired:
evolutionary and descriptive aspects of Atracheophyta and Tracheophyta.
Competence acquired: Plant Systematic knowledge of the Cormophyta and their comparative identification.
Skills acquired (at the end of the course): interpretation at macro- and micro-morphological levels, and identification of the most important Tracheophyta. Collecting and management of a herbarium.
Prerequisites
Courses to be used as requirements (required and/or recommended): Botany I,Genetics
Courses required: Botany I
Courses recommended: Genetics
Teaching Methods
Total hours of the course (including the time spent in attending lectures, seminars, private study, examinations, etc...): 120.
Contact hours for: Lectures (hours): 48
Contact hours for: Laboratory (hours): 12
Contact hours for: Laboratory-field/practice (hours): 24
Further information
Frequency of lectures, practice and lab: not required, the 75% is recommended.
Teaching tools: microscopes, stereoscopes, photos and digital tools.
Type of Assessment
Oral exam and identification of plant dried specimens, and/or uno of more microscopic samples.
Course program
Section 1 (R.M. Baldini)
For each group of plants examined are treated the following aspects: morphology, anatomy, reproductive biology, ecology, taxonomic interpretation based on the most important evolutionary features (apomorphies, plesiomorphies, convergences etc.), in an evolutionary and comparative approach.
Transiction from the water to terrestrial environment. Algal evolution.
Briophyta (Bryophyta)
Marchantiopsida– Anthocerotopsida (Anthoceros).
Bryopsida.
Tracheofite
Early Pteridophyta
Rhyniophyta
Zosterophyllophyta. Trimerophytophyta.
Lycopodiophyta, Lycophytes: Lycopodiaceae. Isoetopsida:
Selaginellales. Lepidodendrales.
Isoëtales.
Monilophyta:
Equisetophyta:Equisetales: Equisetaceae. Equisetales: Calamitaceae.
Psilotopsida: Ophioglossales. Psilotales.
Mariattiopsida: Marattiales.
Polypodiophyta: Polypodiales. Marsileales. Salviniales.
Progymnospermophyta
Pteridospermophyta.
Gimnosperme:
Cycadophyta.
Ginkgophyta.
Coniferae:
Pinopsida. Cupressopsida.
(Gnetophyta) - Gnetales: Ephedra,Gnetum, Welwitschia.
Angiospermae (Magnoliophyta): introduction.
Section 2 (R.M. Baldini)
Angiospermae (Morphology).
Evolution of the early Angiosperms: fossil records. Approaches to the classification of the Angiosperms. Basal Angiosperms. Apomorphies.
General morphology Biological forms. Vegetative and reproductive cycles. Phytography. Descriptive terminology
Esophenotype and endophenotype
Classification and identification. Systems and methodology of classificarion: artificial, natural, phenetic, phyletic, cladistic.
Collecting methods. The herbarium and its realization.
Botanical Nomenclature. Typification. ICBN.
Study and identification of some of the most important Angiosperm families to the Italian Flora.