Cheilanthes cucullans Fée

  • Authority

    Mickel, John T. & Smith, Alan R. 2004. The pteridophytes of Mexico. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 88: 1-1054.

  • Family

    Pteridaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Cheilanthes cucullans Fée

  • Description

    Species Description - Rhizomes long-creeping, horizontal, 2 mm diam.; rhizome scales linear-lanceolate, ca. 2 mm long, concolorous orange-tan, often blackish at base or with age, margins often with cilia, 0.1–0.3 mm long; fronds 14–35 cm long, distant; stipes 1/3–1/2 the frond length, castaneous to black, lustrous, terete, with filiform orangetan scales 2 cells wide; blades oblong-lanceolate, bipinnatepinnatifid to tripinnate, chartaceous, pinnule lobes obcuneate on both acroscopic and basiscopic sides of pinnules; rachises and costae with dense appressed filiform scales 1–2 mm long, 2 cells wide; adaxial surfaces dark green, glabrous; abaxial surfaces with scattered to dense, 0.3–0.5 mm long, whitish, catenate hairs and sparse orange-tan, filiform scales 0.5–1mm long; laminar margins recurved, especially at segment tips, slightly modified into 0.5 mm wide entire false indusia; spores tan.

  • Discussion

    Type. Mexico. Valley of Mexico, Schaffner 82 (RB; isotype K!, frag. US!).Cheilanthes micromera Link, Hort. Berol. 2: 36. 1833. Cheilanthes microphylla (Sw.) Sw. ß micromera (Link) T. Moore, Index Fil. 247. 1861. Type. Mexico. Cultivated at B (B, photo NY!; possible isotype BR!).

    Unverified, Doubtful, or Mistaken Reports. Qro (Pin˜a 92, ENCB, cited by Di´az-Barriga & Palacios-Rios, 1992, but not verified).

    Cheilanthes cucullans resembles C. microphylla but has abundant hair-like scales on rachises and costae, long-creeping rhizomes, and long-ciliate rhizome scales. See key for comparison with C. notholaenoides, which also has dense hairs on its rachises.