Aspidotis

Last updated

Aspidotis
Aspidotis densa BB-1913.jpg
Aspidotis densa
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Family: Pteridaceae
Subfamily: Cheilanthoideae
Genus: Aspidotis
(Nutt. ex Hook.) Copel.
Species

See text.

Aspidotis is a small genus of leptosporangiate ferns known commonly as laceferns. Most species are native to slopes, ridges, and rocky outcroppings, primarily in California and Mexico, [1] although one species included in the genus by some authorities is widely distributed in eastern Africa. [2]

Contents

Description

Members of Aspidotis are small ferns, with shiny, tufted fronds generally less than 35 centimeters long (although A. schimperi may be larger [2] ). Fertile leaves have false indusia formed by the leaves' inrolled margins, which partially conceal the spore-bearing sori. [1] [3]

Taxonomy

The taxonomy of laceferns has been considerably refined since they were first described in the late 1800s. Species currently placed in Aspidotis were originally assigned to a section of Hypolepis , then to Cheilanthes . David Lellinger established Aspidotis as a distinct genus based on characteristic features of its false indusia and its leaves, including their shiny surface, [4] although as late as the 1990 publication of the Kubitzki system, these ferns were sometimes still included in Cheilanthes. [5]

Species

As of January 2020, the Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World recognized five species, [6] including one identified as a fertile interspecific hybrid. [7]

Other species of plants commonly known as laceferns are not part of Aspidotis and are often not closely related. Microlepia strigosa is from a different order of ferns, and Asparagus setaceus is not a fern at all.

Ecology

Ferns in this genus grow in a variety of conditions, from low woodland slopes, [2] to chaparral, to higher-elevation ridges, to marginal habitats like rocky crevices and the bases of boulders. [1] [3]

Some laceferns show an affinity for serpentine soil. In particular, disjunct populations of A. densa in eastern North America are edaphic endemics. [8] A. carlotta-halliae and the West Coast populations of A. densa are commonly associated with these ultramafic soils but are not restricted to them. [9] [10]

Etymology

Not all authorities agree on the exact etymology of Aspidotis. In all cases, the name is derived from Greek, and refers to the distinctive shield-like false indusium found especially in A. californica. Some authors suggest ασπιδοτες (shield-bearer) [1] as the intended origin, while others claim ασπιδος-ωτος (shield-eared). [11]

Related Research Articles

<i>Cheilanthes</i> Genus of ferns in the family Pteridaceae

Cheilanthes, commonly known as lip ferns, is a genus of about 180 species of rock-dwelling ferns with a cosmopolitan distribution in warm, dry, rocky regions, often growing in small crevices high up on cliffs. Most are small, sturdy and evergreen. The leaves, often densely covered in trichomes, spring directly from the rootstocks. Many of them are desert ferns, curling up during dry times and reviving with the coming of moisture. At the ends of veins sporangia, or spore-bearing structures, are protected by leaf margins, which curl over them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dryopteridaceae</span> Family of ferns

The Dryopteridaceae are a family of leptosporangiate ferns in the order Polypodiales. They are known colloquially as the wood ferns. In the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I), the family is placed in the suborder Polypodiineae. Alternatively, it may be treated as the subfamily Dryopteridoideae of a very broadly defined family Polypodiaceae sensu lato.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pteridaceae</span> Family of ferns

Pteridaceae is a family of ferns in the order Polypodiales, including some 1150 known species in ca 45 genera, divided over five subfamilies. The family includes four groups of genera that are sometimes recognized as separate families: the adiantoid, cheilanthoid, pteridoid, and hemionitidoid ferns. Relationships among these groups remain unclear, and although some recent genetic analyses of the Pteridales suggest that neither the family Pteridaceae nor the major groups within it are all monophyletic, as yet these analyses are insufficiently comprehensive and robust to provide good support for a revision of the order at the family level.

<i>Myriopteris clevelandii</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris clevelandii, formerly known as Cheilanthes clevelandii, is a species of lip fern known by the common name Cleveland's lip fern. It is native to southern California and Baja California in Mexico. The leaf is divided into small, bead-like segments densely covered with scales beneath. In M. clevelandii, some of these scales are reduced to hairlike structures, which help distinguish it from the closely related M. covillei. It is usually found growing on exposed rock, particularly igneous rock.

<i>Argyrochosma jonesii</i> Species of fern in the family Pteridaceae

Argyrochosma jonesii, known as Jones' false cloak fern, is a species of fern native to the southwestern United States and Sonora, Mexico. It grows on calcareous rocks, and has small, finely-divided leaves with a leathery texture and dark axes connecting the leaf segments. Unlike many members of Argyrochosma, it does not secrete white powder on the underside of its leaves. First described as a species in 1917, it was transferred to the new genus Argyrochosma in 1987, recognizing their distinctness from the "cloak ferns".

<i>Aspidotis carlotta-halliae</i> Species of fern

Aspidotis carlotta-halliae is a species of perennial fern known by the common names tufted lacefern and Carlotta Hall's lace fern. It is endemic to California, where it is found in the Central Coast Ranges and coastal hillsides, often on serpentine soils. This species is a fertile hybrid between Aspidotis californica and Aspidotis densa. The fern was named for fern collector Carlotta Case Hall, who coauthored the 1912 botanical guide A Yosemite Flora with her husband, botanist Harvey Monroe Hall.

<i>Aspidotis densa</i> Species of fern

Aspidotis densa is a species of fern in the Cheilanthoid subfamily, known by the common name Indian's dream or Serpentine fern or dense lace fern. It is native to the west coast of North America from British Columbia to California and east to the Rocky Mountains in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; there is a disjunct population on serpentine soils in Quebec.

Myriopteris cooperae, formerly Cheilanthes cooperae, is a species of lip fern known by the common name Mrs. Cooper's lip fern, or simply Cooper's lip fern.

<i>Homalosorus</i> Genus of ferns

Homalosorus is a genus of fern with only one species, Homalosorus pycnocarpos. It may also be referred to by its older synonyms Athyrium pycnocarpon and Diplazium pycnocarpon. Commonly referred to as the narrow-leaved glade fern, narrow-leaved-spleenwort, or glade fern, it is endemic to eastern North America and typically grows in moist woodlands. Once classified in the family Athyriaceae due to its linear, often doubled sori, in the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016, it is placed in the small family Diplaziopsidaceae, whose other three species are native to east Asia. Other sources place the genus in the subfamily Diplaziopsidoideae of a very broadly defined family Aspleniaceae, equivalent to the suborder Aspleniineae in PPG I.

<i>Myriopteris tomentosa</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris tomentosa, formerly known as Cheilanthes tomentosa, is a perennial fern known as woolly lipfern. Woolly lipfern is native to the southern United States, from Pennsylvania to Arizona and Georgia, and Mexico.

<i>Myriopteris lanosa</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris lanosa, the hairy lip fern, is a moderately-sized fern of the eastern United States, a member of the family Pteridaceae. Its leaves and stem are sparsely covered in hairs, but lack scales, hence its common name. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was usually classified in the genus Cheilanthes until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows in shallow, dry, soil, often in rocky habitats.

<i>Myriopteris alabamensis</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris alabamensis, the Alabama lip fern, is a moderately-sized fern of the United States and Mexico, a member of the family Pteridaceae. Unlike many members of its genus, its leaves have a few hairs on upper and lower surfaces, or lack them entirely. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was usually classified in the genus Cheilanthes as Cheilanthes alabamensis until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows in shade on limestone outcrops.

Myriopteris aemula, the Texas lip fern or rival lip fern, is a moderately-sized fern of Texas and Mexico, a member of the family Pteridaceae. Unlike many members of its genus, its leaves have a few hairs on upper and lower surfaces, or lack them entirely. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was usually classified in the genus Cheilanthes as Cheilanthes aemula until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows on limestone rock.

<i>Argyrochosma dealbata</i> Species of fern in the family Pteridaceae

Argyrochosma dealbata, the powdery false cloak fern, is a small fern endemic to the central and southern United States. It grows on calcareous rocks, such as limestone. Its leaves are highly divided, with leaf segments joined by shiny, chestnut-brown axes, and their undersides are coated with white powder, giving the fern its name. First described as a species in 1814, it was transferred to the new genus Argyrochosma in 1987, recognizing their distinctness from the "cloak ferns".

<i>Myriopteris aurea</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris aurea, the golden lip fern or Bonaire lip fern, is a moderately-sized fern native to the Americas, a member of the family Pteridaceae. Unlike many members of its genus, its leaf is only modestly dissected into lobed leaflets (pinnae), which are hairy both above and below. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, until 2013 it was classified in the genus Cheilanthes as Cheilanthes bonariensis, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows on dry, rocky slopes, and ranges from Mexico, where it is common and widespread, and the southwestern United States south and east through Central and South America as far as Chile and Argentina.

<i>Argyrochosma fendleri</i> Species of fern in the family Pteridaceae

Argyrochosma fendleri, Fendler's false cloak fern, is a fern known from the western United States and northwestern Mexico. It grows in rocky habitats, and is distinguished from other members of the genus by its zig-zag leaf axes. Like many species in the genus, it bears white powder on the underside of its leaves. First described as a species in 1851, it was transferred to the new genus Argyrochosma in 1987, recognizing their distinctness from the "cloak ferns".

Argyrochosma incana, the hairy false cloak fern, is a fern known from the southwestern United States through Mexico to Guatemala, and from a disjunct population in the Dominican Republic. It grows on rocky slopes and steep banks, often in forests. Like many of the false cloak ferns, it bears white powder on the underside of its leaves. First described as a species in 1825, it was transferred to the new genus Argyrochosma in 1987, recognizing their distinctness from the "cloak ferns".

<i>Myriopteris rufa</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris rufa, commonly known as Eaton's lip fern, is a moderately-sized fern of Mexico and the southwestern United States, with outlying populations in Costa Rica and the Appalachian Mountains. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was usually classified in the genus Cheilanthes, as Cheilanthes eatonii, until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows in rocky habitats, most frequently on limestone but also sometimes on basalt or shale.

Myriopteris chipinquensis is a fern endemic to Mexico, a member of the family Pteridaceae. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was classified in the genus Cheilanthes until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It grows in oak-pine forests of the Sierra Madre Oriental, often with the very similar and closely related Myriopteris tomentosa.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Flora of North America Editorial Committee, ed. (4 Nov 1993). Pteridophytes and Gymnosperms. Flora of North America: North of Mexico. Vol. 2. Oxford University Press. pp. 170–171. ISBN   978-0-19-508242-5.
  2. 1 2 3 Beentje, H. J., ed. (1 Jun 2002). Flora of Tropical East Africa - Adiantaceae. A. A. Balkema Publishers. pp. 2–3. ISBN   978-90-5809-410-0.
  3. 1 2 Smith, A. Reid (1975). "The Californian species of Aspidotis". Madroño. 23 (1): 15–24.
  4. ↑ Lellinger, David B. (1968). "A Note on Aspidotis". American Fern Journal. 58 (3): 140–141. doi:10.2307/1546553. JSTOR   1546553.
  5. ↑ Kramer, K.U.; Green, P.S.; Kubitzki, K., eds. (Jan 1990). Pteridophytes and Gymnosperms. The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants. Vol. 1. Springer. p. 242. ISBN   978-3-540-51794-8.
  6. ↑ Hassler, Michael & Schmitt, Bernd (November 2019). "Oeosporangium". Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World. 8.11. Archived from the original on 2017-09-02. Retrieved 2020-01-01.
  7. ↑ Wagner Jr., W.H.; Gilbert, Elizabeth F. (Nov 1957). "An Unusual New Cheilanthoid Fern from California". American Journal of Botany. 44 (9): 738–743. doi:10.2307/2438394. JSTOR   2438394.
  8. ↑ Harris, Tanner; Rajakaruna, Nishanta (2009). "Adiantum viridimontanum, Aspidotis densa, Minuartia marcescens, and Symphyotrichum rhiannon: Additional Serpentine Endemics from Eastern North America". Northeastern Naturalist. 16 (sp5): 111–120. doi:10.1656/045.016.0509. S2CID   54871497.
  9. ↑ Howell, John Thomas (Jan–Mar 1960). "The Endemic Pteridophytes of the California Floral Province". American Fern Journal. 50 (1): 15–25. doi:10.2307/1545239. JSTOR   1545239.
  10. ↑ Safford, H. D.; Viers, J. H.; Harrison, S. P. (2005). "Serpentine Endemism in the California Flora: A Database of Serpentine Affinity". Madroño. 52 (4): 222–257. doi:10.3120/0024-9637(2005)52[222:seitcf]2.0.co;2. S2CID   84632195.
  11. ↑ Gledhill, David (17 Mar 2008). The Names of Plants (4th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p.  59. ISBN   978-0-521-86645-3.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.