Dryopteris athamantica (Kunze) Kuntze

Dryopteridaceae, JP Roux, M Shaffer-Fehre, B Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2007

Type

South Africa, ad portum Natalensem, Feb. 1842, Gueinzius s.n. (LZ†, holo.; K!, lecto., here designated)

Morphology General Habit

Terrestrial or epilithic.

Vegetative Multiplication Rhizomes

Rhizome short-decumbent to suberect, rarely branched, to 13 mm in diameter, with ferrugineous oblong-acuminate to narrowly lanceolate scales up to 18 × 2 mm, entire

Morphology Leaves

Fronds tufted, erect, up to 1.3 m long.

Morphology Leaves Stipes

Stipe stout, proximally castaneous, stramineous higher up, up to 54 cm long and 14 mm in diameter, with ferrugineous linear to oblong scales up to 24 × 2.5 mm, acuminate, entire, with long twisted filiform outgrowths or with a few scattered glandular cells.

Morphology Leaves Leaf lamina

Lamina firmly herbaceous, narrowly ovate, up to 78 cm long, up to 2-pinnate pinnatifid.

Morphology Leaves Rachis

Rachis stramineous to greenish, narrowly winged towards apex, moderately to sparsely set with twisted ferrugineous to stramineous linear to filiform scales up to 6 × 0.6 mm and hairs.

Morphology Leaves Pinnae

Pinnae up to 23 stalked pairs, basal pinnae inaequilaterally broadly ovate, those higher up symmetrically lanceolate, basal pinna pair mostly longest, mostly basiscopically developed, up to 19 × 12 cm, with up to 8 stalked pinnule pairs; pinna-rachis narrowly winged for most of its length, with sparse scales up to 4 × 0.4 mm, similar to, but smaller than those on rachis; pinnules lanceolate, acroscopically developed, acroscopic pinnule on basal pinnae up to 48 × 28 mm, basiscopic pinnule on basal pinnae up to 72 × 30 mm; costa narrowly winged; segments narrowly trullate, narrowly triangular, narrowly rhomboid or oblongobtuse, up to 20 × 7 mm, basiscopically decurrent, often shallowly lobed, lobes denticulate to crenate, adaxially glabrous or with a few filiform scales along the costae, abaxially sparsely set with filiform scales, uniseriate hairs bearing one or more glandular cells near base, isocytic hairs, and often also with unicellular glands (50–)78(–142) mm long

Morphology Reproductive morphology Sori

Sori inframedial on the predominantly anadromous vein branches, discrete or touching at maturity, circular, up to 1.6 mm in diameter at maturity; sporangium stalk simple or haired; indusium brown, firmly herbaceous, reniform, entire to erose, up to 1.7 mm in diameter

Morphology Reproductive morphology Spores

Spores ellipsoidal monolete, perispore with narrow to broad reticulate ridges, granulate, 38–52 × 26–36 mm

Ecology

Grassland, scattered tree grassland, miombo woodland, often near water or in shade of rocks; (1000–)1200–2000(–3050) m

Conservation

Widespread; least concern (LC)

Note

Vida in Helv. Chim. Acta 56: 2129 (1973) report the species as diploid: 2n = 80 ±2.

Distribution

Range: Throughout West and southern Africa Flora districts: U1 U2 U3 U4 U5 K3 K5 T1 T4 T7 T8