Ferns
Equisetum telmateia, a horsetail
Ferns are the second most species-rich lineage among existing vascular plants, with more than 10,000 species.
Broadly, they comprise:
- horsetails
- whisk ferns
- adder’s tongues and moonworts
- marattioid ferns
- all leptosporangiate ferns
Fern lineage
Ferns form the sister lineage to the seed plants.
Their lineage traces back to the Upper Devonian and underwent several major diversification and extinction events during its history. The current fern diversity is mainly shaped by a Cretaceous radiation.