Nephrolepis biserrata (Sw.) Schott

  • Authority

    Proctor, George R. 1989. Ferns of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 53: 1-389.

  • Family

    Nephrolepidaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Nephrolepis biserrata (Sw.) Schott

  • Description

    Species Description - Plants terrestrial or epiphytic. Rhizome erect, woody, up to 25 cm long, densely clothed at apex with spreading, lance-attenuate, lustrous dark brown, hair-pointed scales up to 10 mm long and ca. 0.6 mm wide above the base, these with whitish, sparingly ciliate margins, and peltately attached near base. Fronds erect, arching, or pendent, 1-3 m long or more; stipes stout (up to 5 mm diam.), 12-60 cm long, bearing deciduous, pale brown, delicately clathrate, flexuous, linear-filiform scales, these peltately attached at the enlarged fimbriate base. Blades linear-oblong or broadly linear, up to 2 m long or more and of apparently indeterminate growth, 14-30 cm broad, slightly narrowed toward base; rhachis light brown, finely and deciduously fibrillosescaly; pinnae numerous, linear-oblong, 7-15 cm long, 1.2-2.5 cm broad, acute to acuminate at the apex, subequilateral at base and rounded to truncate or sometimes subauriculate acroscopically, the margins varying from finely dentateserrulate on sterile pinnae to crenate or biserrate on fertile ones; tissue sparsely to densely hirtellous abaxially (rarely nearly glabrous), sometimes also with small, pale brown, stellate-fimbriate scales; veins commonly 2-forked. Sori supramedial; indusium orbicular with slit-like sinus, the sinus area often bearing a few small hairs or very minute capitate glands.

  • Discussion

    Fig. 76.

    Basionym. Aspidium biserratum Swartz, J. Bot. (Schrader) 1800(2): 32. 1802.

    Type. Groendal, from Mauritius (S).

    Syn. Nephrodium biserratum (Swartz) K. Presl, Reliq. haenk. 1:31. 1825.

    Hypopeltis biserrata (Swartz) Bory in Belanger, Voy. Indes Or. 2: 65. 1833.

    Nephrolepis acuta K. Presl, Tent, pterid. 79. 1836. (Type ?)

    Lepidoneuron biserratum (Swartz) Fee, Mem. foug. 5:301. 1852.

  • Distribution

    General Distribution. Pantropical.