The Cyatheaceae are a family of ferns, the scaly tree ferns, one of eight families in the order Cyatheales in the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I). The sori are often covered by a flap of tissue called an indusium, a useful characteristic for classifying the Cyatheaceae. Some indusia are cup-shaped (cyatheoid), while others are hood-shaped (hemitelioid), enclose the sorus (sphaeropteroid), or scaly. Like most ferns, members of the Cyatheaceae are homosporous. Cyatheaceae are found in both New and Old World tropical wet montane forests and cloud forests, with some species extending into south-temperate regions. In the Cyatheaceae, the sori occur away from the margins of the pinnules, and are elongate or rounded.

Taxonomy

, two different circumscriptions of the family Cyatheaceae are used, as summarized in the table below. In the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I), the family is one of eight in the order Cyatheales, and has three genera. and Fern Tree of life

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References

  • Large, M.F. and J.E. Braggins Tree Ferns. Timber Press (2004).
  • Tree ferns:Monophyletic groups and their relationships as revealed by four protein-coding plastid loci
  • Palacios-Rios, M. 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20170107191324/http://www.helechos.com.mx/