Kingdom Plantae Higher classification Polypodiales | Division Pteridophyta Order Polypodiales | |
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Lower classifications Woodsia, Gymnocarpium, Gymnocarpium dryopteris | ||
Eupolypods II is a clade of ferns in the order Polypodiales, under the class Polypodiopsida. This group generally corresponds with the order Blechnales described by J. L. Reveal in 1993. However, the Blechnales families were found to be embedded within the larger definition of the order Polypodiales describe by Smith et al., 2006, so according to their system, the group is treated as an informal clade.
This clade includes some important ferns, including the Sensitive fern, Onoclea sensibilis, which grows as a virtual weed throughout much of its temperate North American range, and ferns of the genus Thelypteris, a genus that has shown remarkable speciation. It also includes one of the more common horticultural ferns, the Ostrich fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris.
Phylogenic relationships
The following diagram shows a likely phylogenic relationship between the families of eupolypods II, based on Lehtonen, 2011, and Rothfels & al., 2012.