Plants dioecious, with thick roots merging into simple or branched subterranean stems
Stem tuberous, with leaf or leaves from apex of each stem or branch, alternating with series of small scale-like bracts
Leaves pinnate, 1-4 from each stem, somewhat fern-like, petiolate, deciduous; leaflets in several to many opposite or subopposite pairs, with a conspicuous midrib and dichotomously forked lateral veins
Cones with scales (sporophylls) arranged spirally, tightly imbricate upwards
Male scales with pollen cells stipitate on lower surface towards base; pollen ellipsoidal, without wings or air-bladders
Female scales stalked, with 2 ovules, 1 on either side and above pedicel and with micropyle directed towards cone axis; scale head, or bulla shield-like, with incurved lateral lobes
Seeds with fleshy outer layer tightly adhering to hard inner shell encasing copious endosperm; cotyledons 2
x = 6
Nomenclature:
Stangeria T.Moore
Moore: 228 (1853)
Hutchinson & Rattray: 25 (1933)
Dyer: 1 (1966)
Johnson & Wilson: 371 (1990)
Jones: 265 (1993)
Distribution & Notes:
Southern Africa: Species 1: Stangeria eriopus (Kunze) Nash, N KwaZulu-Natal to Eastern Cape near East London, in coastal grassland and forest
References:
DYER, R.A. 1966. Stangeriaceae. Flora of southern Africa 1
HUTCHINSON, J. & RATTRAY, G. 1933. Cycadaceae. Flora capensis 5, 2 (Supplement)
JOHNSON, L.A.S. & WILSON, K.L. 1990. Stangeriaceae. In K. Kubitzki, The families and genera of vascular plants 1. Springer-Verlag, Berlin
JONES, D.L. 1993. Cycads of the world. Reed, Sydney
MOORE, T. 1853. List of Mr Plant's Natal ferns. Hooker's Journal of Botany and Kew Gardens Miscellany 5
Copyright of the content hosted by this website remains with the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), unless stated otherwise. Material from this site may be used in other media, provided that SANBI is acknowledged by the name South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) or refer to the 'How to cite this resource' paragraph on the Home page. Liability disclaimer: Visitors use this site at their own risk and SANBI is not liable for any of the consequences resulting therefrom.
Welcome to Biodiversity Advisor 2.0!
Biodiversity Advisor, developed by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) and its Data Partners, is a system that will provide integrated biodiversity information to a wide range of users who will have access to geospatial data, plant and animal species distribution data, ecosystem-level data, literature, images and metadata.
The integrated information comes from our much-loved Botanical Database of Southern Africa (BODATSA) also known as Plants of Southern Africa (POSA), Zoological Database of Southern Africa (ZODATSA), Biodiversity Geographic Information System (BGIS), SANBI's institutional repository (Opus) and others.
The system is still under development, so you may find a few bugs/issues. If you do, please report it via the error reporting button available in various sections of the website or provide us with any useful feedback you may have via the ‘Give us feedback’ option available in the sidebar menu. You can create a free account for yourself by clicking on the user profile icon which will take you through to the login page. Here you can choose the ‘Create an account’ option or simply fill in your details if you have an account already. Having an account on Biodiversity Advisor will provide users with free access to biodiversity resources.
In future, Team SANBI will be able to log in using their day-to-day login details, BGIS users will be able to use their existing accounts and details, and general users will be able to log in using their LinkedIn profile, but for now you will need to create an account.
