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Glyptostrobus pensilis

(Chinese Swamp Cypress)

Overview

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Critically Endangered

Threat status

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Chinese Swamp Cypress, Chinese Water Fir

Description

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Family Cupressaceae

Trees or shrubs evergreen , monoecious or dioecious. Leaves decussate or in whorls of 3, scalelike and then often dimorphic with flattened facial leaves and keeled lateral leaves, or needlelike particularly in juvenile plants , often with an abaxial resin gland . Pollen cones terminal or axillary , solitary, maturing and shed annually; microsporophylls 6-16, decussate or whorled , each bearing (2 or) 3-6(-9) pollen sacs ; pollen wingless. Seed cones usually terminal, solitary, globose , ovoid , or oblong , dehiscent or indehiscent when mature in 1st or 2nd(or 3rd) year; cone scales developing after ovules originate in bract axils; bracts almost completely enveloped by cone scales, free only at apex; ovules 1-numerous per bract axil, erect ; cone scales of mature cones 3-16, flat or peltate, woody, leathery, or succulent, 1-20-seeded. Seeds winged or not; wings derived from seed coat . Cotyledons usually 2, rarely 3-6. Germination epigeal.

Nineteen genera and ca. 125 species: worldwide; eight genera (one introduced ) and 46 species (16 endemic, 13 introduced) in China.[1]

Genus Glyptostrobus

Trees semievergreen, monoecious; winter buds small; branchlets dimorphic : perennial and annual ; perennial branchlets remaining green for several years, with white lines of stomatal dots, becoming ridged and grooved with decurrent leaf bases ; annual branchlets deciduous, short, never developing scars or buds. Leaves spirally arranged , sessile, trimorphic: leaves on main branches, perennial branchlets (after 1st year), and fertile branchlets radially spreading , scalelike, relatively thick (resembling leaves of Cupressus but spirally arranged), persistent for 2 or 3 years; leaves on annual branchlets of mature trees in 3 rows , radially spreading, subulate , quadrangular in cross section (resembling leaves of Cryptomeria), deciduous with branchlet as a unit ; leaves of annual branchlets of young trees and seedlings often 2-ranked, sessile, linear , flat, thin, deciduous (resembling leaves of Taxodium). Pollen cones terminal on short, erect branchlets bearing scalelike leaves, solitary, ellipsoid ; microsporophylls 15-20, spirally arranged, sessile; pollen sacs (2-) 5-7(-9). Seed cones terminal, shortly pedunculate , erect when mature, ± pyriform ; bracts of mature cones ± completely connate with cone scales (free only at apex), triangular, recurved, borne on central or middle distal part of abaxial side of cone scales; ovules 2 per bract axil; cone scales 20-22, spirally arranged, sessile, woody, basal scales sterile , median scales 2-seeded, with 6-10 triangular, acute teeth at distal margin, distal scales ligulate , multiangular, sterile. Seeds ellipsoid, slightly flattened, small, with a single, terminal, recurved wing. Cotyledons 4 or 5. Germination epigeal. 2n = 22*.

One species: China, extinct in the wild in N Vietnam.

A Tertiary relict species, the only surviving member of a genus formerly widespread prior to the Quaternary glaciations. Resembling the American genus Taxodium (which is introduced in China) in its vegetative characters, and occurring in similar habitats .[2]

Physical Description

Habit: Deciduous.

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 20-30' tall.

Habitat

Biome: Terrestrial [3].

Ecology: A heliophilous species, intolerant of competition and usually growing in pure stands or solitary along streams . In China it is mainly found on river floodplains and in deltas , always near or in water, where it develops a buttressed base and occasionally pneumatophores; also extensively planted along rivers and canals. In Viet Nam and Lao PDR it occurs along streams and in seasonally inundated areas at altitudes between 500 and 700 m asl.[3].

List of Habitats :

Biology

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Growth

Soil: Minimum pH: 5.6 • Maximum pH: 7.8

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full Sun .

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Synonyms

Cuprespinnata heterophylla (Brongn.) J. Nelson • Cuprespinnata sinensis (Forbes) J. Nelson • Glyptostrobus aquaticus (Roxb.) R. Parker • Glyptostrobus heterophyllus (Brongn.) Endl. • Glyptostrobus sinensis A. Henry Ex Loder • Juniperus aquatica Roxb. • Sabina aquatica (Roxb.) Antoine • Taxodium japonicum Brongn. • Taxodium japonicum var. heterophyllum Brongn. • Thuja pensilis Staunton Ex D. Don

Notes

Publishing author : K .Koch Publication : Dendrologie 2(2): 191 1873 [Nov 1873]

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Comment: Conservation status: EN (A1c; A2c; B1; B2a;C, Habit: Tree

Last scrutiny: 5-Jun-2008

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Glyptostrobus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 1 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

G. pensilis (Chinese Swamp Cypress)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 24, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Liguo Fu, Yong-fu Yu, Robert P. Adams & Aljos Farjon "Cupressaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 4 Page 62. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. "Glyptostrobus". in Flora of China Vol. 4 Page 57. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  3. Thomas, P., Yang, Y., Farjon, A., Nguyen, D. & Liao, W. 2011. Glyptostrobus pensilis. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 01 February 2012. [back]
Last Revised: 7/21/2012