Myriopteris cooperae

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Myriopteris cooperae
Myriopteris cooperae.jpg
Frond of M. cooperae
Status TNC G3.svg
Vulnerable  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Family: Pteridaceae
Genus: Myriopteris
Species:
M. cooperae
Binomial name
Myriopteris cooperae
(D.C.Eaton) Grusz & Windham
Synonyms
  • Allosorus cooperae(D.C.Eaton) Farw.
  • Cheilanthes cooperaeD.C.Eaton
  • Hemionitis cooperae(D.C.Eaton) Christenh.

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. Its leaves grow in clusters and are highly dissected into oblong segments, rather than the beadlike segments found in some other members of the genus. The axes of the leaves are dark and covered in long, flattened hairs. It is only known from California, where it grows in rocky habitats, usually over limestone. The species was named in honor of its collector, Sarah Paxson Cooper; according to Daniel Cady Eaton, who described it in 1875, it was the first fern species to be named for a female botanist.

Contents

Description

The rhizomes are short with closely-spaced leaf bases, typically 4 to 8 millimeters (0.2 to 0.3 in) in diameter, [2] and upright or ascending rather than horizontal. [3] The rhizome bears persistent scales, whose shape ranges from linear-subulate [2] to linear-lanceolate [3] or lanceolate. [4] They are brown [2] or tan to reddish-brown in color, more or less uniform in color [3] [4] or darkening towards the tip. [2]

The fronds arise from the rhizome in clusters, reaching a size from 5 to 30 centimeters (2 to 10 in) long, [2] (occasionally to 32 centimeters (13 in) or more), [4] and 3 to 6 centimeters (1 to 2 in) wide (occasionally to 8 centimeters (3.1 in) or more). [4] The stipe (the stalk of the leaf below the blade) is 1.5 to 8 centimeters (0.59 to 3.1 in) long [3] and less than 2 millimeters (0.08 in) wide, [4] flattened or with a slight groove in the upper surface, [2] and generally dark brown in color, [2] ranging from reddish-brown to purplish-black. [3] It is covered with many long, flattened hairs. [2] [3]

The leaf blades are linear-oblong to lanceolate-ovate [2] or elliptic-lanceolate in overall shape, typically 3 to 15 centimeters (1.2 to 5.9 in) long [3] and 1.5 to 5 centimeters (0.59 to 2.0 in) wide. [2] [3] They are typically tripinnate (cut into pinnae, pinnules, and pinnulets) at the base; [2] the pinnulets may be pinnatifid. [3] The rachis (leaf axis) is similar in morphology to the stipe, which it extends: dark, rounded or slightly groove above, and covered with the same type of hairs. Scales are absent. [2]

At the base of each pinna, the dark color of the costa continues into the pinna base; there is no distinct joint between stalk and leaf. The basal pinnae are slightly smaller than the pair just above them. The upper surfaces of the costae (pinna axes) are green (rather than dark) for most of their length. [2] The pinnules are oblong, truncate to obtuse at the base and round at the apex. [3] The smallest divisions of the leaf are linear-oblong to obovate in shape, rather than beadlike as in many species of Myriopteris. [2] They are typically 1 to 5 millimeters (0.04 to 0.2 in), [4] the largest of them being from 3 to 5 millimeters (0.1 to 0.2 in) in length. Long, flattened hairs like those of the stipe and rachis are abundant on both side of the leaf blade. [2]

On fertile fronds, the edge of the leaf folds under to form a false indusium from 0.05 to 0.25 millimeters (0.0020 to 0.0098 in) wide. The tissue of the false indusia is only weakly differentiated from that of the rest of the leaf blade. [2] Beneath the false indusia, the sori are broken into segments, most concentrated near the apex of the leaf segments and in their lateral lobes. [2] Each sporangium contains 64 tan spores. [2] [4] Individual sporophytes have a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 60. [2] [4]

M. cooperae is similar to M. viscida, a species of California and Baja California, but lacks the glandular pubescence of the latter, and does not overlap it in range. [2]

Taxonomy

The species was first described as Cheilanthes cooperae by D. C. Eaton in 1875, from material collected by Sarah Paxson Cooper near Santa Barbara, California and by John Gill Lemmon in Sierra Valley. Eaton named the species for Cooper, the first American fern, according to him, to be named in honor of a female botanist. [5] By a strict application of the principle of priority, Oliver Atkins Farwell transferred the species to the genus Allosorus as Allosorus cooperae in 1931, that genus having been published before Cheilanthes . [6] Farwell's name was rendered unnecessary when Cheilanthes was conserved over Allosorus in the Paris Code published in 1956.

The development of molecular phylogenetic methods showed that the traditional circumscription of Cheilanthes is polyphyletic. Convergent evolution in arid environments is thought to be responsible for widespread homoplasy in the morphological characters traditionally used to classify it and the segregate genera that have sometimes been recognized. On the basis of molecular evidence, Amanda Grusz and Michael D. Windham revived the genus Myriopteris in 2013 for a group of species formerly placed in Cheilanthes. One of these was C. cooperae, which thus became Myriopteris cooperae. [7] In 2018, Maarten J. M. Christenhusz transferred the species to Hemionitis as H. cooperae, as part of a program to consolidate the cheilanthoid ferns into that genus. [8]

Further molecular studies in Myriopteris demonstrated the existence of three well-supported clades within the genus. M. cooperae belongs to what Grusz et al. informally named the lanosa clade. Within this clade, M. cooperae is sister to all other species except M. viscida , which is sister to M. cooperae plus the rest of the clade. [9] The lanosa clade is distinguished from all other species of the genus, except M. wrightii , by forming fiddleheads as leaves emerge. The basal grade of M. cooperae and M. viscida is distinguished from the rest of the clade by their flattened rachides. [10]

Distribution and habitat

It is endemic to California, where it is widespread [11] but not very common. It can be found growing in crevices in rocky habitat, generally on limestone, [2] [4] [3] in chaparral and other habitats. It is found between 100 and 700 meters (300 and 2,000 ft) in altitude. [2]

Conservation

NatureServe considers M. cooperae globally vulnerable (G3) due to its limited distribution, although it is not considered threatened within California. [1]

See also

Notes and references

Related Research Articles

<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>Myriopteris gracillima</i> Species of fern

Myriopteris gracillima, formerly known as Cheilanthes gracillima, is a species of lip fern known by the common name lace lip fern. It is native to western North America, where it grows in rocky habitat from British Columbia to California to Montana.

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

Myriopteris intertexta, formerly Cheilanthes intertexta, is a species of lip fern known by the common name coastal lip fern. It is native to montane California and western Nevada, Oregon east of the Cascades, and with a disjunct population in central Utah. It grows in dry rocky habitats in sun, typically in rock cracks with little or no soil.

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

Myriopteris newberryi, formerly Cheilanthes newberryi, is a species of lip fern known by the common name Newberry's lip fern. It is native to southern California and Baja California.

<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 Virginia to Arizona and Georgia, and Mexico.

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

Myriopteris myriophylla, the Central American lace fern, is a species of lip fern. Despite its common name, this species is native as far south as Argentina. It is adapted to dry areas.

<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</i> Genus of ferns

Myriopteris, commonly known as the lip ferns, is a genus of cheilanthoid ferns. Like other cheilanthoids, they are ferns of dry habitats, reproducing both sexually and apogamously. Many species have leaves divided into a large number of small, bead-like segments, the probable inspiration for the generic name. Hairs and/or scales are often present on both the upper and lower surfaces of the leaf, and their presence and appearance are useful in distinguishing between species. The genus is most diverse in Mexico, but species are found from southwestern Canada south to southern Chile, and one species is endemic to southern Africa.

<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 maxoniana is a species of cheilanthoid fern known only from one collection in Tamaulipas, Mexico. It closely resembles Myriopteris longipila and was not described as a distinct taxon until 2004.

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.

Myriopteris yatskievychiana is a small fern native to Mexico, a member of the family Pteridaceae. It is known only from a single collection in the Mexican state of Sonora. While superficially similar to golden lip fern, a widespread species in Mexico, differences in its coating of hairs and its small size make it distinctive. 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.

Myriopteris allosuroides is a moderately-sized fern of Mexico, a member of the family Pteridaceae. Unlike many members of its genus, its rachides are grooved on the upper surface and largely free of hairs or scales. One of the cheilanthoid ferns, it was usually classified in the genera Cheilanthes or Pellaea until 2013, when the genus Myriopteris was again recognized as separate from Cheilanthes. It typically grows on dry, rocky slopes over acidic, particularly basaltic, rock.

<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>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 longipila, formerly known as Cheilanthes longipila, is a species of fern native to Mexico. It is characterized by a dense covering of long whitish hairs.

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

Myriopteris rawsonii, formerly known as Cheilanthes rawsonii, is a perennial fern native to Namaqualand in Southern Africa. Like many other cheilanthoid ferns, it is adapted to dry conditions, bearing a thick layer of pale hairs on the underside of its pinnate-pinnatifid leaves. It is the only African representative of its clade of cheilanthoids, the otherwise American genus Myriopteris. It spends much of the year in a dried-out, dormant state, rehydrating and putting out new growth during winter rains. Its name honors the botanist and civil servant Sir Rawson W. Rawson.

<i>Myriopteris lindheimeri</i> Species of plant

Myriopteris lindheimeri, formerly known as Cheilanthes lindheimeri, is a species of fern in the Pteridaceae family with the common name fairy swords.

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.

Myriopteris cinnamomea is a Central American fern. It is very similar to M. mickelii of southern Mexico and to other species in the "alabamensis clade" of Myriopteris. It is modestly sized, with leaves not more than 30 centimeters (12 in) long. They are divided into pinnae, which in turn are divided into lobed pinnules, and covered with pale brown hairs on the underside.

References

  1. 1 2 NatureServe 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Windham & Rabe 1993.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Lellinger 1985, p. 143.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Kirkpatrick et al. 2014.
  5. ↑ Eaton 1875, p. 33.
  6. ↑ Farwell 1931, p. 285.
  7. ↑ Grusz & Windham 2013.
  8. ↑ Christenhusz, Fay & Byng 2018, p. 12.
  9. ↑ Grusz et al. 2014, p. 704.
  10. ↑ Grusz et al. 2014, p. 705.
  11. ↑ Kartesz 2014.

Works cited

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