| Marsilea | |
|---|---|
| |
| Marsilea villosa | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Division: | Polypodiophyta |
| Class: | Polypodiopsida |
| Order: | Salviniales |
| Family: | Marsileaceae |
| Genus: | Marsilea L. |
| Type species | |
| Marsilea quadrifolia | |
| Species[1] | |
|
See text. | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Marsilea is a genus of approximately 65 species of aquatic ferns of the family Marsileaceae. The name honours Italian naturalist Luigi Ferdinando Marsili (1656–1730).[3]
These small plants are of unusual appearance and do not resemble common ferns. Common names include water clover and four-leaf clover because of the long-stalked leaves have four clover-like lobes and are either present above water or submerged. It is worth clarifying that these plants are not clovers.
The sporocarps of some Australian species are very drought-resistant, surviving up to 100 years in dry conditions. On wetting, the gelatinous interior of the sporocarp swells, splitting it and releasing a worm-like mass that carries sori, eventually leading to germination of spores and fertilization.
- ^ "Marsilea — The Plant List". The Plant List. 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
- ^ "Genus: Marsilea L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2007-10-05. Archived from the original on 2012-10-07. Retrieved 2010-07-13.
- ^ "Marsilea Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1099. 1753; Gen. Pl. ed. 5, 485, 1754". Flora of North America. eFloras.org. Retrieved 2013-04-14.