Editing Flowering plant (section)

== Diversity ==

=== Ecological diversity ===

{{further|Plant ecology}}

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=225px heights=225px caption="Largest and smallest">
File:MountainAshWithCars.jpg|''[[Eucalyptus regnans]]'',<br/>a tree almost 100 m tall
File:WolffiaArrhiza2.jpg|''[[Wolffia arrhiza]]'', a rootless floating freshwater plant under 2&nbsp;mm across
</gallery>

The largest angiosperms are ''[[Eucalyptus]]'' gum trees of Australia, and ''[[Shorea faguetiana]]'', dipterocarp rainforest trees of Southeast Asia, both of which can reach almost {{convert|100|m|ft}} in height.<ref>{{cite web |title=Menara, yellow meranti, Shorea |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/572236-tallest-flowering-plant-angiosperm |website=Guinness World Records |date=6 January 2019 |access-date=8 May 2023 |quote=yellow meranti (''Shorea faguetiana'') ...  98.53 m (323 ft 3.1 in) tall ... swamp gum (''Eucalyptus regnans'') ... In 2014, it had a tape-drop height of 99.82 m (327 ft 5.9 in)}}</ref> The smallest are ''[[Wolffia]]'' duckweeds which float on freshwater, each plant less than {{convert|2|mm|in|2}} across.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-11-25 |title=The Charms of Duckweed |url=http://www.mobot.org/jwcross/duckweed/duckweed.htm |access-date=2022-07-05 |publisher=[[Missouri Botanical Garden]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125213317/http://www.mobot.org/jwcross/duckweed/duckweed.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 November 2009 }}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=225px heights=225px caption="Photosynthetic and parasitic">
File:Sunlight on a gunnera leaf, 'Quarry Garden', Belsay estate - geograph.org.uk - 1384733.jpg|''[[Gunnera]]'' captures sunlight for [[photosynthesis]] over the large surfaces of its leaves, which are supported by strong veins.
File:Orobanche purpurea.jpg|''[[Orobanche|Orobanche purpurea]]'', a [[Parasitism|parasitic]] broomrape with no leaves, obtains all its food from other plants.
</gallery>

Considering their method of obtaining energy, some 99% of flowering plants are [[photosynthetic]] [[autotroph]]s, deriving their energy from sunlight and using it to create molecules such as [[sugar]]s. The remainder are [[parasitic]], whether [[myco-heterotrophy|on fungi]] like the [[orchids]] for part or all of their life-cycle,<ref>{{cite journal |last=Leake |first=J.R. |year=1994 |title=The biology of myco-heterotrophic ('saprophytic') plants |journal=New Phytologist |volume=127 |issue=2 |pages=171–216 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-8137.1994.tb04272.x |pmid=33874520 |bibcode=1994NewPh.127..171L |s2cid=85142620 }}</ref> or [[Parasitic plant|on other plants]], either wholly like the broomrapes, ''[[Orobanche]]'', or partially like the witchweeds, ''[[Striga]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Westwood |first1=James H. |last2=Yoder |first2=John I. |last3=Timko |first3=Michael P. |last4=dePamphilis |first4=Claude W. |title=The evolution of parasitism in plants |journal=Trends in Plant Science |volume=15 |issue=4 |year=2010 |issn=1360-1385 |doi=10.1016/j.tplants.2010.01.004 |pages=227–235|pmid=20153240 |bibcode=2010TPS....15..227W }}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=225px heights=225px caption="Hot, cold, wet, dry, fresh, salt">
File:Carnegiea gigantea Saguaro cactus plant (cropped).jpg|''[[Carnegiea gigantea]]'', the saguaro cactus, grows in hot dry [[desert]]s in Mexico and the southern United States.
File:Dryas octopetala (Colorado, USA).jpg|''[[Dryas octopetala]]'', the mountain avens, lives in cold arctic and montane habitats in the far north of America and Eurasia.
File:Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. (47502598342).jpg|''[[Nelumbo nucifera]]'', the sacred lotus, grows in warm freshwater across tropical and subtropical Asia.
File:Zostera.jpg|''[[Zostera]]'' seagrass grows on the seabed in sheltered coastal waters.
</gallery>

In terms of their environment, flowering plants are cosmopolitan, occupying a wide range of [[habitat]]s on land, in fresh water and in the sea. On land, they are the dominant plant group in every habitat except for frigid moss-lichen [[tundra]] and [[coniferous forest]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Angiosperms |url=http://landau.faculty.unlv.edu//angiosperms.htm |publisher=University of Nevada, Las Vegas |access-date=6 May 2023}}</ref> The [[seagrass]]es in the [[Alismatales]] grow in marine environments, spreading with [[rhizome]]s that grow through the mud in sheltered coastal waters.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kendrick |first1=Gary A. |last2=Orth |first2=Robert J. |last3=Sinclair |first3=Elizabeth A. |last4=Statton |first4=John |title=Plant Regeneration from Seeds |chapter=Effect of climate change on regeneration of seagrasses from seeds |year=2022 |doi=10.1016/b978-0-12-823731-1.00011-1 |pages=275–283 |isbn=978-0-1282-3731-1 }}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=225px heights=225px caption="Acid, alkaline">
File:Drosera anglica ne2.jpg|''[[Drosera anglica]]'', a sundew, lives in nutrient-poor acid [[bog]]s, [[Carnivorous plant|deriving nutrients from trapped insects]].<ref name="Karlsson-1992"/>
File:Gentiana verna.jpg|''[[Gentiana verna]]'', the spring gentian, flourishes in dry limestone habitats.<ref name="Pardoe-1995"/>
</gallery>

Some specialised angiosperms are able to flourish in extremely acid or alkaline habitats. The [[sundew]]s, many of which live in nutrient-poor acid [[bog]]s, are [[carnivorous plant]]s, able to derive nutrients such as [[nitrate]] from the bodies of trapped insects.<ref name="Karlsson-1992">{{cite journal |last1=Karlsson |first1=P. S. |last2=Pate |first2=J. S. |title=Contrasting effects of supplementary feeding of insects or mineral nutrients on the growth and nitrogen and phosphorous economy of pygmy species of Drosera. |journal=Oecologia |date=1992 |volume=92 |issue=1 |pages=8–13 |doi=10.1007/BF00317256 |pmid=28311806 |bibcode=1992Oecol..92....8K |s2cid=13038192 }}</ref> Other flowers such as ''[[Gentiana verna]]'', the spring gentian, are adapted to the alkaline conditions found on [[calcium]]-rich [[chalk]] and [[limestone]], which give rise to often dry [[Topography|topographies]] such as [[limestone pavement]].<ref name="Pardoe-1995">{{cite book |last=Pardoe |first=H. S. |title=Mountain Plants of the British Isles |year=1995 |publisher=[[Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales|National Museum of Wales]] |page=24 |isbn=978-0-7200-0423-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bRHwm1F15S0C&pg=PA24}}</ref>

<gallery class=center mode=nolines widths=225px heights=225px caption="Herbaceous, woody, climbing">
File:GT Herb Robert.jpg|''[[Geranium robertianum]]'', herb-Robert, is an annual or [[Biennial plant|biennial]] herb of Europe and North America.
File:Betula_pendula_001.jpg|''[[Betula pendula]]'', the silver birch, is a perennial [[deciduous]] tree of Eurasia.
File:Lianas.jpg|[[Liana]]s ''[[Austrosteenisia]]'', ''[[Parsonsia]]'', and ''[[Sarcopetalum]]'' climbing trees in Australia
</gallery>

As for their [[growth habit]], the flowering plants range from small, soft [[herbaceous plant]]s, often living as [[annual plant|annuals]] or [[biennials]] that set seed and die after one growing season,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hart |first1=Robin |title=Why are Biennials so Few? |journal=[[The American Naturalist]] |date=1977 |volume=111 |issue=980 |pages=792–799 |doi=10.1086/283209 |jstor=2460334 |bibcode=1977ANat..111..792H |s2cid=85343835 }}</ref> to large [[Perennial plant|perennial]] woody [[tree]]s that may live for many centuries and grow to many metres in height. Some species grow tall without being self-supporting like trees by [[climbing plant|climbing]] on other plants in the manner of [[vine]]s or [[liana]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rowe |first1=Nick |last2=Speck |first2=Thomas |title=Plant growth forms: an ecological and evolutionary perspective |journal=New Phytologist |volume=166 |issue=1 |date=2005-01-12 |issn=0028-646X |doi=10.1111/j.1469-8137.2004.01309.x |pages=61–72 |pmid=15760351 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2005NewPh.166...61R }}</ref>

=== Taxonomic diversity ===

The number of species of flowering plants is estimated to be in the range of 250,000 to 400,000.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Thorne |first=R.F. |title=How many species of seed plants are there?|journal=Taxon|volume=51 |pages=511–522 |year=2002|doi=10.2307/1554864 |issue=3 |jstor=1554864|bibcode=2002Taxon..51..511T }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Scotland |first1=R. W. |last2=Wortley |first2=A. H. |title=How many species of seed plants are there? |journal=Taxon |volume=52 |pages=101–104|year=2003 |doi=10.2307/3647306 |issue=1 |jstor=3647306|bibcode=2003Taxon..52..101S }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Govaerts |first=R. |title=How many species of seed plants are there? – a response |journal=Taxon |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=583–584 |year=2003 |doi=10.2307/3647457 |jstor=3647457|doi-access=free |bibcode=2003Taxon..52..583G }}</ref> This compares to around 12,000 species of [[moss]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Goffinet |first1=Bernard |last2=Buck |first2=William R. |year=2004 |title=Systematics of the Bryophyta (Mosses): From molecules to a revised classification |journal=Monographs in Systematic Botany |volume=98 |pages=205–239 }}</ref> and 11,000 species of [[Pteridophyta|pteridophytes]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Raven |first1=Peter H. |last2=Evert |first2=Ray F. |last3=Eichhorn |first3=Susan E. |date=2005 |title=Biology of Plants |edition=7th |location=New York |publisher=[[W. H. Freeman and Company]] |isbn=0-7167-1007-2 }}</ref> The [[APG system]] seeks to determine the number of [[family (biology)|families]], mostly by [[molecular phylogenetics]]. In the 2009 [[APG III]] there were 415 families.{{sfn|APG|2009}} The 2016 [[APG IV]] added five new orders (Boraginales, Dilleniales, Icacinales, Metteniusales and Vahliales), along with some new families, for a total of 64 angiosperm orders and 416 families.{{sfn|APG|2016}}

The diversity of flowering plants is not evenly distributed. Nearly all species belong to the eudicot (75%), monocot (23%), and magnoliid (2%) clades. The remaining five clades contain a little over 250 species in total; i.e. less than 0.1% of flowering plant diversity, divided among nine families. The 25 most species-rich of 443 families,<ref name="Stevens 2011">{{cite web |last=Stevens |first=P. F. |year=2011 |url=https://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/Research/APweb/welcome.html |title=Angiosperm Phylogeny Website (at Missouri Botanical Garden) |access-date=21 February 2022 |archive-date=20 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120065914/http://www.mobot.org/mobot/research/apweb/welcome.html |url-status=live}}</ref> containing over 166,000 species between them in their APG circumscriptions, are:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ The 25 largest angiosperm families<ref name="Stevens 2011"/>
|-
! <!--Rank, by size--> !! Group !! [[Family (biology)|Family]] !! English name !! No. of [[species|spp.]] 
|-
| 1 || Eudicot ||  [[Asteraceae]] or Compositae  || [[Bellis perennis|daisy]] ||  22,750 
|-
| 2 || Monocot ||  [[Orchidaceae]]  || [[orchid]] ||  21,950 
|-
| 3 || Eudicot ||  [[Fabaceae]] or Leguminosae  || [[pea]], [[legume]] ||  19,400 
|-
| 4 || Eudicot ||  [[Rubiaceae]]  || [[Rubia|madder]] ||  13,150<ref>{{cite web|title=Kew Scientist 30|date=October 2006|url=https://www.kew.org/kewscientist/ks_30.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927005410/https://www.kew.org/kewscientist/ks_30.pdf|archive-date=27 September 2007}}</ref>
|-
| 5 || Monocot ||  [[Poaceae]] or Gramineae  || [[grass]] ||  10,035 
|-
| 6 || Eudicot ||  [[Lamiaceae]] or Labiatae  || [[mentha|mint]] ||  7,175 
|-
| 7 || Eudicot ||  [[Euphorbiaceae]]  || [[spurge]] ||  5,735 
|-
| 8 || Eudicot ||  [[Melastomataceae]]  || [[Melastoma|melastome]] ||  5,005 
|-
| 9 || Eudicot ||  [[Myrtaceae]]  || [[Myrtus|myrtle]] ||  4,625 
|-
| 10 || Eudicot ||  [[Apocynaceae]]  || [[dogbane]] ||  4,555 
|-
| 11 || Monocot ||  [[Cyperaceae]]  || [[sedge]] ||  4,350 
|-
| 12 || Eudicot ||  [[Malvaceae]]  || [[Malva|mallow]] ||  4,225 
|-
| 13 || Monocot ||  [[Araceae]]  || [[arum]] ||  4,025 
|-
| 14 || Eudicot ||  [[Ericaceae]]  || [[Erica (plant)|heath]] ||  3,995 
|-
| 15 || Eudicot ||  [[Gesneriaceae]]  || [[gesneria]]d ||  3,870 
|-
| 16 || Eudicot ||  [[Apiaceae]] or Umbelliferae  || [[parsley]] ||  3,780 
|-
| 17 || Eudicot ||  [[Brassicaceae]] or Cruciferae  || [[cabbage]] ||  3,710
|-
| 18 || Magnoliid dicot ||  [[Piperaceae]]  || [[Piper (genus)|pepper]] ||  3,600 
|-
| 19 || Monocot ||  [[Bromeliaceae]]  || [[bromelia]]d ||  3,540 
|-
| 20 || Eudicot ||  [[Acanthaceae]]  || [[Acanthus (plant)|acanthus]] ||  3,500 
|-
| 21 || Eudicot ||  [[Rosaceae]]  || [[rose]] ||  2,830 
|-
| 22 || Eudicot ||  [[Boraginaceae]]  || [[borage]] ||  2,740 
|-
| 23 || Eudicot ||  [[Urticaceae]]  || [[Urtica dioica|nettle]] ||  2,625 
|-
| 24 || Eudicot ||  [[Ranunculaceae]]  || [[buttercup]] ||  2,525 
|-
| 25 || Magnoliid dicot ||  [[Lauraceae]]  || [[Laurus|laurel]] ||  2,500 
|}