The Cyatheaceae are a family of tree ferns, the scaly tree ferns, one of eight families in the order Cyatheales in the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016. Alternatively, the family may defined much more broadly as the only family in the Cyatheales, with the PPG I family treated as the subfamily Cyatheoideae. The narrower circumscription is used in this article.
Alsophila australis, synonym Cyathea australis, also known as the rough tree fern, is a species of tree fern native to southeastern Queensland, New South Wales and southern Victoria in Australia, as well as Tasmania and Norfolk Island.
Alsophila brooksii, synonym Cyathea brooksii, is a species of tree fern native to Cuba, Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, where it grows on serpentine soils in shaded ravines, along streams, and on forested slopes at an altitude of 250–950 m. The trunk is prostrate and only about 6 cm in diameter. Fronds are pinnate or bipinnate and up to 2 m long. The base of the rachis is covered with blackish scales that have a paler margin. Sori occur in two rows, one along each side of the pinnule midvein.
Alsophila capensis, synonym Cyathea capensis, is a regionally widespread and highly variable species of tree fern. It is indigenous to Southern Africa and South America.
Alsophila caudata, synonym Cyathea caudata, is a species of tree fern native to the islands of Luzon and Mindanao in the Philippines, where it grows in montane forest. The trunk is erect and up to 4 m tall or more. Fronds are bi- or tripinnate and 1–2 m long. The stipe is warty and covered with dark, narrow, glossy scales. Sori are borne near the midvein of fertile pinnules and are protected by firm, brown indusia.
Alsophila jimeneziana, synonym Cyathea crassa, is a species of tree fern endemic to the Dominican Republic. Little is known about this rare tree fern.
Alsophila cunninghamii, synonym Cyathea cunninghamii, also known as the gully tree fern and slender tree fern, is a species of tree fern indigenous to New Zealand including North Island, South Island and Chatham Islands; also to Victoria, possibly New South Wales, southeastern Queensland and Tasmania in Australia. It grows in damp forest, often emerging from stream gullies and riverbanks. Brownsey noted that it has a lower tolerance for drought than other related species. The erect trunk may be 20 m tall and is usually 6–15 cm in diameter, occasionally as much as 20 cm. Fronds are tri- to tetrapinnate and 3 m or more in length. The rachis and stipe are slender, black brown, warty and covered with brown scales. Sori occur along each side of the pinnule midvein and are covered by hood-like indusia. A. cunninghamii is an uncommon and slow-growing tree fern.
Alsophila doctersii, synonym Cyathea doctersii, is a species of tree fern endemic to Sumatra, where it grows in forest at an altitude of approximately 150 m. The trunk is erect and 2–3 m tall. Fronds are bi- or tripinnate and 2–3 m long. The stipe is covered with scattered flat, brown scales and some hairs. Sori occur near the fertile pinnule midvein and are covered by thin, brown indusia that are scale-like in appearance.
Alsophila dregei, synonym Cyathea dregei, is a widespread species of tree fern in southern Africa.
Alsophila fulgens, synonym Cyathea fulgens, is a species of tree fern native to Cuba, Jamaica and Hispaniola. It forms part of the complex centered on Alsophila woodwardioides comprising six very similar taxa from the Greater Antilles. The other five species are Alsophila jimeneziana, Alsophila grevilleana, Alsophila portoricensis and Alsophila tussacii. Large and Braggins (2004) note that this group is known to cross with members of the Alsophila minor complex. In the wild, A. fulgens also forms hybrids with Alsophila brooksii.
Alsophila gigantea, synonym Cyathea gigantea, is a species of tree fern native to northeastern to southern India, Sri Lanka, Nepal to Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, the Malay Peninsula, as well as central Sumatra and western Java. It grows in moist open areas at an altitude of 600–1000 m. The trunk of this species is erect and may be as tall as 5 m or more. Fronds are bi- or tripinnate and usually 2–3 m long. The rachis is long, dark to black in colouration and rough in appearance after the fall of scales. These scales are dark brown, glossy and have a narrow paler margin and fragile edges. Sori are round and indusia absent.
Alsophila gleichenioides, synonym Cyathea gleichenioides, is a species of tree fern endemic to New Guinea, where it grows in open peaty grassland and on forest margins, often in groups, at an altitude of 2800–3700 m. The trunk of this plant is erect, up to 3 m tall and about 24 cm in diameter. The narrow fronds are tripinnate and about 1 m in length. Around 60 fronds form a rounded crown. The stipe is warty and bears scattered scales towards the base. These scales may be either glossy brown with a paler dull margin, or small, pale and fringed. Sori occur one or two per fertile pinnule and are protected by firm, brown indusia.
Alsophila × marcescens, synonym Cyathea × marcescens, commonly known as the skirted tree fern, is a tree fern endemic to the Cape Otway ranges in Victoria and Tasmania, Australia. It is a natural hybrid, apparently Alsophila australis × Alsophila cunninghamii. Large and Braggins (2004) note that it has characteristics midway between these two species. The spores of A. × marcescens are usually malformed although sterile. The trunk of this plant is erect and up to 10 m tall. Fronds may be bi- or tripinnate and 3–4 m in length. Dead fronds often persist, forming a characteristic skirt around the trunk. The stipe is thick, black and warty. The rachis and trunk are covered in shiny, dark brown scales. Sori are borne near the fertile pinnule midvein and are protected by thin indusia that are saucer-like in appearance.
Alsophila hotteana, synonym Cyathea hotteana, is a species of tree fern endemic to Haiti, where it grows in cloud forest at an altitude of 1000–1200 m. The trunk of this plant is erect, up to 2 m tall, and approximately 8 cm in diameter. Fronds are pinnate and may reach 2 m in length. Brown basal scales cover the rachis and stipe, which are also brown. Sori are borne in two rows, one on each side of the pinnule midvein. They are covered by shallow, plate-like indusia, which bear one or two clefts at the margin.
Alsophila javanica, synonym Cyathea javanica, is a species of tree fern native to western Java and Sumatra, in Indonesia. It grows in rain forest and on riverbanks at an altitude of 250–1500 m.
Alsophila latebrosa, synonym Cyathea latebrosa, is a common and widespread species of tree fern native to Indochina. Its natural range covers Cambodia and Thailand, and stretches from the Malay Peninsula to Indonesia, where it is present on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. Plants reported from India and Sri Lanka have thinner indusia and may represent a separate, as-yet undescribed, species. A. latebrosa grows in a wide range of habitats, including forest, secondary forest, and plantations, from sea level up to an elevation of about 1500 m.
Alsophila × boytelii is a tree fern endemic to the Sierra Maestra range of southeastern Cuba. It is a natural interspecific hybrid between Alsophila balanocarpa and Alsophila woodwardioides. The spores of A. × boytelii are normal in appearance; Caluff and Serrano (2002) suggest that it might therefore be fertile. This theory is strengthened by the presence of a large population of A. × boytelii in the Gran Piedra area. Caluff and Serrano (2002) note that "a full range of intermediates linking this hybrid with its parent species suggests the occurrence of backcrossing".
Alsophila × fagildei is a tree fern endemic to the Sierra de Moa and Sierra del Purial in Guantánamo Province, Cuba. It is a natural interspecific hybrid between Alsophila minor and Alsophila woodwardioides. The spores of A. × fagildei are normal in appearance; Caluff and Serrano (2002) suggest that it might therefore be fertile.
Alsophila is a genus of tree ferns in the family Cyatheaceae. It has also been considered to be a section in the subgenus Cyathea of the genus Cyathea.
Alsophila woodwardioides is a species of tree fern native to Jamaica, Cuba and Hispaniola.
