About the PLANTS Classification Report

The higher level classification followed here is derived from many sources. In the list below, divisions and higher ranks are arranged in presumptive phylogenetic order within each kingdom, with those appearing earliest in the fossil record listed first. Names below are alphabetical within each Division regardless of rank or phylogeny (and are strictly alphabetical within ranks in the actual reports). In a very few cases names have been used at ranks that are different than originally proposed in the publication cited.

Recent realignments in the relationships of several mostly primitive orders of flowering plants that are traditionally included within the Magnoliopsida (the dicots) remain controversial and are not reflected in our classification (see Tree of Life for some alternative arrangements). Also not included are other recent proposals for new circumscriptions of families such as Verbenaceae and Lamiaceae or Scrophulariaceae sensu lato; these groups are retained with their traditional circumscriptions and places as per Cronquist (1981) pending greater stability and acceptance of inferred relationships.

Geographic coverage for the Classification Report is as follows: liverworts, hornworts, mosses, and lichens of North America, vascular plants of the US and its Caribbean territories. Data contributors for names at the family level and below are listed elsewhere on the PLANTS Web site.