Diplazium

• Authority

  Mickel, John T. & Beitel, Joseph M. 1988. Pteridophyte Flora of Oaxaca, Mexico. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 46: 1-580.

• Family

  Athyriaceae

• Scientific Name

  Diplazium

• Description

  Genus Description - Terrestrial; rhizome usually erect, scaly; roots stout and subfleshy; fronds medium-sized to large, monomorphic, not articulate; stipe usually glabrous, scaly at base; blade usually pinnate to bipinnate-pinnatifid, rarely simple or tripinnate; lamina thin to coriaceous, glabrous to short-pubescent, sometimes scaly; vegetative reproduction common from rachis buds; veins generally free, rarely casually to abundantly anastomosing; sori abaxial, linear or oblong on the veins, usually with at least some of them back to back on a single vein, indusia generally covering each sorus to lacking, paraphyses lacking; spores reniform, with winged perispore.

• Discussion

  Lectotype (chosen by J. Smith?, Hist. fil. 325. 1875): Asplenium plantagineum Linnaeus [=Diplazium plantaginifolium (Linnaeus) Urban]. Diplazium is a genus of 350-400 species, probably with over 100 in the New World, generally of wet tropical forests of low to medium (rarely higher) elevations. Hybridization is apparently common in the genus, judging from chromosome counts made from neotropical species, which range from diploid to octoploid. More studies are needed for complete understanding of the species and their relationships. Diplazium is distinguished by its indusiate sori elongate along the veins, at least some back to back on the same vein, coarse roots, two ribbonlike stipe bundles, and chromosome number of x = 41. Reference: Lellinger, D. B. 1978. Río Palenque fern notes. Selbyana 2: 283-285.