Family Ruppiaceae
Description: Perennial or annual, submerged aquatic herb with elongate rhizomes; turions present or absent; stems erect, elongated or very short.
Leaves with narrow-linear blade and entire or notched apex; sheath loose, nonligulate, auriculate.
Inflorescence (1 or) 2-flowered, emerging from 2 spathal leaves; peduncle elongating and the spike emerging either just above the leaves (submerged-flowering species) or to the surface (surface-flowering species). In surface-flowering species the peduncle becomes loosely to tightly coiled, retracting flowers below surface as carpels mature. Perianth absent. Carpels 2–19 (–26), free, 1-locular, initially sessile or subsessile but stipe elongating after pollination in most species; ovule 1.
Drupelets ±asymmetric, each on a stipe that sometimes becomes reflexed, usually falling with stipe still attached, the spongy exocarp decaying to leave a hard black or brown endocarp with a stylar beak and a subapical depression.
Distribution and occurrence: World: 1 genus, 11 species, cosmopolitan; Australia: 4 species.
External links:
Angiosperm Phylogeny Website (Family: Ruppiaceae, Order: Alismatales)
Wikipedia
Text by S.W.L. Jacobs, M.A. Brock. Ruppiaceae, in (ed.), Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. https://profiles.ala.org.au/opus/foa/profile/Ruppiaceae [Date Accessed: 20 March 2025]; page created by H. Sauquet (Mar 2025)
Taxon concept: APG IV (2016); Jacobs & Brock in Flora of Australia (accessed 2025); Plants of the World Online (2025)
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