Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Protopteridales
References
Britannica AI Icon

Protopteridales

order of preferns
Written by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last updated

Quick Summary

The Protopteridales were an extinct order of plants that appeared in the Middle Devonian period (about 380 million years ago) and lasted into the Early Permian Epoch (about 280 million years ago). They are considered transitional between the earliest land plants, psilophytes, and later ferns and seed-ferns.1

Key characteristics of Protopteridales include:
* Reproduction: They reproduced by spores, similar to ferns.1
* Wood: They possessed true wood, which was an advancement for fluid conduction, similar to gymnosperms.1
* Leaves: Unlike psilophytes, they had leaves.1

Notable members include Protopteridium, which had leafless lower branches, and Aneurophyton, a fernlike tree that reached at least 6 meters (20 feet) in height. In some classifications, Protopteridales are referred to as progymnosperms.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
6 Britannica Sources
  1. prefern
  2. lungfish
  3. heteropteran - Evolution and paleontology
  4. Pteridaceae
  5. fern - Fossil record
  6. pterosaur

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.