Cheilanthes aemula Maxon
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Authority
Mickel, John T. & Beitel, Joseph M. 1988. Pteridophyte Flora of Oaxaca, Mexico. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 46: 1-580.
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Family
Pteridaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Rhizome short-creeping, slender, 1-2 mm diam.; rhizome scales 2-3 mm long, 0.1-0.3 mm wide, tan to golden brown, linear, concolorous, often darker at base, margin entire; fronds to ca. 45 cm tall, clumped; stipe 1/3-½ the frond length, atropurpureous to black, short-hairy (0.3-0.5 mm long) on upper surface of distal stipe and rachis, with sparse 1-3 mm long hairs; blade deltate, tripinnate-pinnatifid to quadripinnate, texture thin; upper surface papillate, glabrous or with rare, 0.5-0.8 mm long hairs, pinna rachises short-hairy in groove, lower blade surface with scattered 0.5-0.8 mm long hairs on lamina, scattered catenate hairs on axes; sporangia on vein ends, margin curved, modified into 0.3 mm wide false indusium; spores tan.
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Discussion
Type. Mexico. Tamaulipas: Victoria, Palmer 187 (US!; isotypes K!, NY!). Cheilanthes aemula is distinguished by the combination of triangular, tripinnate-pinnatifid to quadripinnate fronds, pinnules with lobes on both acroscopic and basiscopic sides, stipes and rachises with dense adaxial catenate hairs and sparse, longer, abaxial hairs, and lower leaf surfaces with scattered 0.3-0.5 mm long whitish hairs. The closely related C. microphylla and C. alabamensis have fronds that are bipinnate-pin-natifid to tripinnate and lanceolate, whereas both C. cucullans and C. notholaenoides have a dense covering of 1-2 mm long golden hairs on the rachises, and lanceolate fronds that are bipinnate to almost tripinnate.
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Distribution
Dry, rocky slopes; Sola de Vega; 1500-1850 m. Mexico (Chih, Coah, NL, Tam, SLP, Oax, Chis); US (Tex, NM).
Mexico North America| New Mexico United States of America North America| Texas United States of America North America|