The Identity and Morphology of the Three Species of Drynaria (Polypodiaceae) in Bukidnon, Philippines

The objective of the study was to compare the morphoanatomical characters of the species of Drynaria found in Bukidnon, Philippines .The species identified were Drynaria quercifolia (Linn) Sm., D. sparsisora (Desv.) and Moore, D. rigidula (Sw.) Bedd. Morphoanatomical comparisons of the three species of Drynaria showed some similarities such as long creeping and branched rhizome, mature fertile fronds green and sterile fronds brown, leathery and with shiny upper surface and exindusiate sori. On the other hand, differences were observed in the plant height, type of lamina, presence or absence of groove in the stipe, costa and rachis, length and width, margin, fertile and sterile fronds attachment to the rhizome, base, apex, paleae, hair shape and sori arrangement. Anatomically, the five species also differed in the attachment of paleae to the rhizomes, length, width, number and shape of vascular bundles in the stipe, costa and rachis, presence and absence of hypodermis, type of stomata, length, width, number of subsidiary cells, walls of epidermal cells, the cortical arrangement of the tissues in the costa and midvein of the pinna. Based on their morpho-anatomical differences, a taxonomic key was constructed to identify the three species of Drynaria.

 

Keywords - morphology, anatomy, systematic, Drynaria , Bukidnon