Austrobaileyales

Biol 324 Introduction To Seed Plant Taxonomy

Characters of Austrobaileyales (also called Illiciales, from the star-anise order, e.g. Illicium in the Illiciaceae)
- Primitive characters: perianth parts numerous and spirally arranged, separate; stamens numerous and spirally arranged; pistils simple.
- Derived characters: vessels in wood; triaperturate pollen but not homologous with tricolpate pollen of eudicots; leaves with ethereal oil cells (single spherical cells filled with aromatic compounds) like Magnoliids. This is likely a herbivore defence, and it is absent in waterlilies and in Amborella (although waterlilies appear to have epidermal oil cells as a derived feature).

Examples:
Austrobaileya maculata from Australian rainforest with spotted, leaf-like stamens bearing two sporangia on adaxial face (Austrobaileyaceae)
Schisandra (Schisandraceae)
Illicium or star anise (Illiciaceae)

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