Selaginella lepidophylla

Selaginella lepidophylla

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Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Lycophytes
Class: Lycopodiopsida
Order: Selaginellales
Family: Selaginellaceae
Genus: Selaginella
Species:
S. lepidophylla
Binomial name
Selaginella lepidophylla
(Hook. & Grev.) Spring
Synonyms[1]

Lycopodium lepidophyllum
Hooker and Greville

Selaginella lepidophylla (syn. Lycopodium lepidophyllum), also known as a resurrection plant,[2] is a species of desert plant in the spikemoss family (Selaginellaceae). It is native to the Chihuahuan Desert of the United States and Mexico. S. lepidophylla is renowned for its ability to survive almost complete desiccation. Resurrection plants are vascular rooted plants capable of surviving extreme desiccation, then resuming normal metabolic activity upon rehydration. The plant's hydro-responsive movements are governed by stem moisture content, tissue properties and a graded distribution of lignified cells affecting concentric stem stiffness and spiraling.[3] During dry weather in its native habitat, its stems curl into a tight ball, uncurling only when exposed to moisture.[4]

The outer stems of the plant bend into circular rings after a relatively short period without water. The inner stems instead curl slowly into spirals in response to desiccation, due to the action of the strain gradient along their length.[3] Selaginella lepidophylla reaches a maximum height of 5 cm, and is native to the Chihuahuan Desert.[5]

  1. ^ "Selaginella lepidophylla (Hook. & Grev.) Spring". World Flora Online. The World Flora Online Consortium. 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Rafsanjani, A.; V. Brulé; T. L. Western & D. Pasini (January 2015). "Hydro-Responsive Curling of the Resurrection Plant Selaginella lepidophylla". Scientific Reports. 5: 8064. arXiv:1703.01052. Bibcode:2015NatSR...5E8064R. doi:10.1038/srep08064. PMC 4306918. PMID 25623361.
  4. ^ Lebkuecher, J. & W. Eckmeier (June 1993). "Physiological Benefits of Stem Curling for Resurrection Plants in the Field". Ecology. 74 (4): 1073–1080. Bibcode:1993Ecol...74.1073L. doi:10.2307/1940477. JSTOR 1940477.
  5. ^ Pampurova, Suzana; Dijck, Patrick Van (July 2014). "The desiccation tolerant secrets of Selaginella lepidophylla: What we have learned so far?". Plant Physiology and Biochemistry. 80: 285–290. doi:10.1016/j.plaphy.2014.04.015. PMID 24813728.