Our aim was to indicate typical features of Bromeliaceae as well as possible adaptive features found in cerrado species. We studied the leaves of five Bromelioideae, seven Tillandsioideae and one Pitcairnoideae. Usually the stomata of Bromelioideae are located only on the abaxial leaf surface, there is epidermal and subepidermal mechanical tissue present, as well as water-storage parenchyma, sclerified cells not related to the vascular tissues, and longitudinal air canals. The leaves in Tillandsioideae are densely covered by peltate trichomes, and there are stomata on both surfaces and a compact mesophyll. In Pitcairnioideae, the leaf structure is very similar to that of the Bromelioideae but the stomata are slightly raised above epidermal cell level and there are no sclerified cell groups. The results were evaluated in an adaptive and taxonomic context.
Bromeliaceae; leaf anatomy; cerrado; São Paulo State
