Description

Plant systematics is a science that includes and encompasses traditional taxonomy; however, its primary goal is to reconstruct the evolutionary history of plant life. It divides plants into taxonomic groups, using morphological, anatomical, embryological, chromosomal and chemical data.

Course contents

1. Introduction: Importance and relationship with other sciences, Phases of plant taxonomy. Origin and radiation of angiosperm, their probable ancestors, when, where and how did the angiosperms evolve; the earliest fossil records of angiosperms.

2. Concept of Species: What is a species? Taxonomic species, Biological species, Micro and macro species, Species aggregate. Infra specific categories.

3. Speciation: Mechanism of speciation, Mutation and hybridization Geographical isolation, Reproductive isolation, Gradual and abrupt.

4. Variation: Types of variation, Continuous and discontinuous variation, Clinal variation.

 5. Systematics and Genecology / Biosystematics: Introduction and importance, Methodology of conducting biosystematics studies, various biosystematics categories such as ecophene, ecotype, ecospecies, coenospecies and comparium.

6. Taxonomic Evidence: Importance and types of taxonomic evidences: anatomical, cytological, chemical, molecular, palynological, geographical and embryological.

7. Nomenclature: Important rules of botanical nomenclature including effective and valid publication, typification, principles of priority and its limitations, author citation, rank of main taxonomic categories, conditions for rejecting names.

8. Classification: Why classification is necessary? Importance of predictive value.Brief history, Different systems of classification with at least one example of each (Linnaeus, Bentham and Hooker, Engler and Prantle, Bessey, Cronquist, Takhtajan, and Dahlgren).

9. Brief introduction of Numerical taxonomy.

10. General characteristics, distribution, evolutionary trends, phyletic relationships and economic importance of the following families of angiosperm:

1. Apiaceae (Umbelliferae)                                              2.  Arecaceae (Palmae)

3.  Asclepiadaceae                                                           4. Asteraceae (Compositae)

5.  Boraginaceae                                                              6.  Brassicaceae (Cruciferae)

7. Capparidaceae                                                 8.  Caryophyllaceae

9. Chenopodiaceous                                                        10. Convolvulaceae

11. Cucurbitaceae                                                            12.Cyperaceae

13. Euphorbiacea                                                 14. Fabaceae (Leguminosae)

15. Lamiaceae (Labiatae)                                                16. Liliaceae

17. Magnoliaceae                                                 18.Malvaceae

19. Myrtaceae                                                                  20. Orchidaceae

21.Papaveraceae                                                  22. Ranunculaceae     

23. Rosaceae             24.Salicaceae                            25. Scrophulariaceae

Course Aim

 This course aims to develop understanding about core concepts of plants systematics and o demonstrate the evolutionary implications of plant diversity.

Student learning outcomes/ learning objectives

 By the end of this course students should be able to

Understand the concept of taxonomy and systematics

Familiarize with concept of species and speciation

Know the taxonomic evidences and their importance

Understand the rules of nomenclature, classification and phyletic relationships of various plant families

Assessment methodology

This is a three-credit lecture course

Mid-term exams 30 marks

Final term exams 45 marks

Practical exam 15 marks

Sessional (Attendance, assignment & presentation) 10 Marks

Book

Plant Systematics, An Integrated approach by Gurcharan Singh (Third Edition), Science publishers India, 2010.

Weekly plan