Question
Question: Staminodes occur in family A. Papillionidae or Arachis B. Malvaceae or Hibiscus C. Caesalpinioideae ...
Staminodes occur in family A. Papillionidae or Arachis B. Malvaceae or Hibiscus C. Caesalpinioideae or Cassia D. Cruciferae or Iberis
Solution
Staminode are the abortive stamen present in the flower. Staminodes are in the stamens i.e. the male reproductive unit of flowering plants.
Complete answer:
The term staminode means the sterile or abortive stamen which is also known as rudimentary. The stamens which do not produce pollen grains are staminodes. Pollen grains can be considered as the male gamete produced by the male reproductive part of the flower that is stamen.Staminodes are the same as stamen but are sterile in nature and do not participate in reproduction.
They are inconspicuous and are seen inside the whorl of flowers but in some flowers, they are long that they protrude from the corolla. The stamens in Caesalpinioideae are not more than ten due to their decrease in staminodes.
Cassia is a Chinese cinnamon which has the staminode that is infertile stamen. Staminodes are the crucial feature of the Caesalpinioideae family.
In Hibiscus, Arachis and Iberis staminodes are absent. So the staminodes are present in Cassia which belongs to the Cesalpinoideae family.
Therefore, the correct option is C.
Note:
In some flowers the staminodes are modified to produce nectar in flowers. Such a modified staminode is seen in Witch Hazel. One example of staminode is the tree which is growing in South America known as cannonball tree. Cassia or Chinese cinnamon is used as a spice and also for medicinal use.