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Manual of the New Zealand Flora.
19. Aspidium, Swartz
19. Aspidium, Swartz.
Bhizome short and erect or ascending, or long and creeping. Fronds tufted at the top of the rhizome or more or less distant along it, very variable in size cutting and venation, 2–3-pinnate or pinnate, coriaceous, more rarely subrnembranous; veins free in all the New Zealand species. Sori globose, dorsal, placed on the back or at the tip of a vein, or at the junction of two veins. Indusium page 997orbicular, attached by a central stalk, flat or convex, membranous, concealing the sorus when young. Sporangia stalked, bursting transversely, girt by an incomplete vertical ring.
A genus of about 70 species, found in most parts of the world. The New Zealand species all belong to the subgenus Polystichum, characterized by the free veins, coriaceous habit, and usually sharply toothed segments. Of the 7 species enumerated in this work, 3 are very widely distributed, 1 is American and antarctic, another extends to Fiji, the remaining 2 are endemic.
A, Rhizome short, stout, erect. Fronds tufted at the top of the rhizome.
Fronds 1–3 ft., oblong - lanceolate, coriaceous, narrowed below, 2-pinnate; segments sharply toothed. Stipes shaggy with large dark scales mixed with hairs 1. A. aculeatum Fronds 4–8 in., oblong-lanceolate, coriaceous, pinnate; segments obtusely toothed. Stipes clothed with blackish-brown scales 2. A. mohrioides. Fronds 9–18 in., ovate-deltoid, rigid and coriaceous, not narrowed below, 1–2 pinnate; segments sharply toothed. Stipes clothed with narrow black scales 3. A. Richardi. Fronds 10–20 in., ovate-oblong, coriaceous, not narrowed below, 2–3 pinnate; segments obtusely toothed. Stipes clothed with large black scales margined with white. Indusium with a large black disc 4. A. oculatum. Fronds 4–12 in., oblong-lanceolate, soft and flaccid, 2-pinnate. Stipes clothed with large pale membranous scales. Indusium large, very convex 5. A. cystostegia.
B. Rhizome long, creeping. Fronds distant along the rhizome.
Fronds 1–3 ft., deltoid, 2–3-pinnate. Ultimate segments obtusely lobed or toothed 6. A. capense. Fronds 1–3 ft., deltoid, 2–3-pinnate. Ultimate segments with aristate teeth or lobes 7. A. aristatum.
| 1. | A. aculeatum, Swartz in Schrad. Journ. ii. (1800) 37; var. vestitum, Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 375.—Rhizome short, stout, erect or ascending, sometimes produced into an erect caudex 1–4 ft. high. Stipes 6–18 in. long, stout, erect, densely clothed with spreading scales; many of the scales large, over 1 in. long, ovate-lanceolate or subulate-lanceolate, long-acuminate, lacerate, straight or curved, glossy, black or dark-brown with a pale margin; others bristle-like or woolly, pale-ferruginous or tawny. Fronds numerous, forming a spreading crown at the top of the caudex, 1–3 ft. long without the stipes, 4–9 in. broad, oblong-lanceolate or linear-oblong, acute or acuminate, narrowed towards the base, rather coriaceous, dark-green, glabrous above when mature, under - surface more or less fibrillose, bipinnate; rhachis usually densely scaly like the stipes, but sometimes the broader scales are wanting. Primary pinnæ numerous, close-set, horizontally spreading, 2–5 in. long, ½–1 in. broad, linear-lanceolate or lanceolate, acuminate. Pinnules numerous, close, shortly stipitate, ovate-rhomboidal, unequal-sided, more or less auricled on the upper side near the base, toothed or lobed or pinnatifid, the lobes acute or pungent. Sori 6–8 to a page 998pinnule, in 2 rows nearer the midrib than the margin. Indusium rather small, flat, orbicular.—Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 22; Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 252; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 78; Field, N.Z. Ferns, 126, t. 8, f. 2. A. vestitum, Swartz, Syn. Fil. 53, 254; A. Rich. Ft. Nouv. Zel. 68; A. Cunn. Precur. n. 218; Raoul, Choix, 38. A. proliferum, R. Br. Prodr. 147; A. Rich. Fl. Nouv. Zel. 69; A Cunn. Precur. n. 220. A. pulcherrimum and A. Waikarense, Col. in Tasmanian Journ. Nat. Sci. (1845) 6, 7. A. perelegans and A. zerophyllum, Col. in Trans. N.Z. Inst. xix. (1897) 416, 418. Polystichum vestitum, Presl. Pteridogr. 177; Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. ii. 38; Homb. and Jacq. Voy. au Pôle Sud, Crypt, t. 4, f. S. P. venustum, Homb. and Jacq. i.e. t. 5, f. N.; Hook. f. Fl. Antarct. i. 106. Polypodium vestitum, Forst. Prodr. n. 445.
Var. sylvatlcum.—Smaller and much more slender. Fronds few, 12–24 in. long including the stipes, not so coriaceous. Pinnæ fewer, more remote; pinnules more distinctly stipitate, narrower, ovate-lanceolate, pinnatifid; segments spinulose. Sori 6–8 to a pinnule; indusium not developed. Polypodium sylvaticum, Col. in Tasmanian Journ. Nat. Sci. (1845) 3; Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. ii. 41, t. 81; Handb. N.Z. Fl. 380; Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 249. North and South Islands, Chatham Islands, Stewart Island, Auckland and Campbell Islands, Antipodes Island, Macquarie Island: Rather local from Cape Colville to the East Cape, not uncommon in hilly districts from thence to Wellington, abundant to the south of Cook Strait. Sea-level to 3500 ft. A. aculeatum, in some of its forms, is found in almost all parts of the world. The New Zealand variety, which is mainly distinguished by the copious large dark-coloured scales, which usually clothe not only the stipes but also the rhachis up to its tip, is also found in Australia, Tasmania, and Fuegia. It varies greatly in the size, shape, and texture of the frond, in the shape of the pinnules and the extent to which they are toothed or lobed, and in many other respects. The fronds are often bifid or crested at the tip, and are sometimes proliferous. |
| 2. | A. mohrioides, Bory. Voy. Duper. Crypt. 267, t. 35.— Rhizome short, stout, erect or oblique, densely clothed with blackish-brown glossy scales. Stipes stout, 2–6 in. long, more or less densely scaly. Fronds tufted at the top of the rhizome, 4–8 in. long, 1–3 in. broad, oblong-lanceolate, subacute, coriaceous, pinnate; rhachis stout, compressed, scaly. Pinnæ numerous, close-set and often imbricating, ¾–1 ½ in. long, ovate or ovate-lanceolate, pinnatifid above, pinnate toward the base. Pinnules about ¼ in. long, ovate or ovate-oblong, obtuse, slightly toothed; teeth obtuse or shortly mucronate. Sori copious, in 2 rows in the pinnules, often confluent when old. Indusium orbicular, dark-brown.—Hook. f. Fl. Antarct. ii. 392, t. 149; Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 26; Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 252; Kirk in Trans. N.Z. Inst. xiv. (1882) 386.
Auckland Islands: Kirk. I have seen no specimens of this from the New Zealand area, and Mr. Kirk's notice in the Trans. N.Z. Inst., quoted above, is the only authority for including the species in the Flora. But as it occurs in Chili, Fuegia, the Falkland Islands, Prince Edward Island, and Marion Island, its existence in the Auckland and Campbell Islands may naturally be expected. page 999 |
| 3. | A. Richardi, Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 23, t. 222.—Rhizome short, thick, densely clothed with linear-subulate dark-brown or blackish scales. Stipes 6–18 in. long, stout, erect, more or less clothed with rigid black subulate deciduous scales mixed with woolly hairs. Fronds few, tufted at the top of the rhizome, 9–18 in. long or more without the stipes, 3–9 in. broad, ovate-deltoid to lanceolate-deltoid, acuminate, not narrowed at the base, rigid and coriaceous, glabrous above, more or less woolly or furfuraceous beneath, pinnate or 2-pinnate; rhachis often scaly and woolly like the stipes, but usually less conspicuously so. Pinnæ numerous, usually close and compact, but sometimes a little remote, spreading, ½–4 in. long, ¾–1½ in. broad, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, deeply pinnatifid or again pinnate. Pinnules numerous, close, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate or ovate-oblong, acute or mucronate or pungent, usually more or less acutely serrate, but sometimes the teeth are obtuse or very obscure. Sori in two rows in each pinnule, about half-way between the midrib and the margin. Indusium orbicular, flat, with a rather large dark disc and pale margin.—Handb. N.Z. Fl. 375; Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 253; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 79; Field, N.Z. Ferns, 128, t. 13, f. 4. A. coriaceum var. acutidentatum, A. Rich. Fl. Nouv. Zel. 71. Polystichum aristatum, Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. ii. 37, t. 78 (not of Presl.). Polystichum Richardi, Diels.
North and South Islands: From the North Cape to the south of Otago, not uncommon in lowland districts, especially near the sea. Also in Fiji. A variable plant, especially in the extent to which the pinnæ are divided, and in the shape and toothing of the pinnules. |
| 4. | A. oculatum, Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 24, t. 228.—"Rhizome absent. Fronds 10–20 in. long, coriaceous, ovate-oblong, acuminate, 3-pin-nate, pale and clothed with woolly hairs below; stipes stout, straw-coloured, covered with rigid, large, subulate, brown scales margined with white; rhachis with fewer softer scales and lax woolly hairs; primary divisions of the frond 2–4 in. long, narrow ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, stalked, not close together; secondary also lax, ⅔–1 in. long, sessile or stalked; pinnules alternate, sessile, decurrent, ¼ in. long, obtuse or mucronate, obtusely toothed or subpinnatifid. Sori abundant over the whole under-surface, 2–4 on each segment; involucre orbicular, shortly stalked, with a large black disc and narrow reddish margin."—Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 376; Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 253; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 79; Field, N.Z., Ferns, 129.
North and South Islands: "Wairarapa Valley, Colenso; Akaroa, Raoul" (Handbook). I have not identified this with certainty, and have consequently reproduced the description given in the Handbook. It is probably nothing more than a trivial variety of A. Richardi with a rather laxer frond than usual, and smaller and shorter pinnules with more obtuse teeth. Mr. Baker keeps it as a distinct species in the "Synopsis Filicum," but in the "Annals of Botany" (Vol. v., 314) he remarks that it is evidently a mere variety of A. Richardi. page 1000 |
| 5. | A. cystostegia, Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 26, t. 227.—Rhizome short, stout, densely scaly, sometimes branched above. Stipes 2–6 in. high, pale-brown, clothed with copious large pale-brown shining membranous lanceolate scales. Fronds very numerous, tufted at the top of the rhizome, 4–10 in. long without the stipes, 1 ½–2 in. broad, oblong-lanceolate, acute, pale-green, soft, membranous and almost flaccid, both surfaces clothed with linear scales when young, 2-pinnate; rhachis stout, densely scaly. Pinnæ-spreading, closely placed above the middle, remote below, ½–1 ½ in. long, ovate-deltoid, pinnate; rhachises often winged. Pinnules ¼–⅓ in. long, ovate-lanceolate, deeply lobed or pinnatifid; segments obtuse or acute. Sori numerous, large, 2–4 to a pinnule. Indusium orbicular, very convex, almost hemispherical, thin and membranous, pale-coloured.—Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 376; Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 253; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 79; Field, N.Z. Ferns, 128, t. 8, f. 3.
North Island: Tongariro, Dieffenbach; Mount Egmont, Mrs. Jones T. F. C.; Tararua Mountains, Buchanan. South Island: Not uncommon in alpine districts throughout. Auckland Islands: Kirk. 3000–5500 ft. A very distinct little species, easily recognised by the stout soft stipes and. rhachis densely clothed with large pale scales, the narrow frond, and large bladdery indusia. A form with a firmer frond and dark-coloured scales on the stipes is occasionally seen. |
| 6. | A. capense, Willd. Sp. Plant, v. 268.—Rhizome long, stout, creeping, covered with large tawny subulate-lanceolate silky scales. Stipes 1–2 ft. long, stout, erect, more or less densely clothed with deciduous scales. Fronds scattered along the rhizome, 9–18 in. long without the stipes, 6–12 in. broad, ovate-deltoid, acuminate, very coriaceous, rigid, glabrous or the under-surface slightly paleaceous, 3-pinnate; rhachis deciduously scaly. Primary pinnæ erectopatent, stipitate, lanceolate or lanceolate-deltoid, 2-pinnate; the lowest pair the largest, 4–8 in. long, 2–3 in. broad, the basal secondary pinna on each side of the frond longer than the others. Ultimate segments oblong, obtuse or subacute, shortly and bluntly lobed or almost entire, not mucronate. Sori copious, in 2 rows near the midrib, often covering the whole under-surface. Indusium large, orbicular, sometimes with a distinct sinus.—Hook, and Bak. Syn. Fil. 254; Benth. Fl. Austral. vii. 758; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 80; Field. N.Z. Ferns, 129, t. 6, f. 2. A. coriaceum, Swartz, Syn. Fil. 57; A. Rich. Fl. Nouv. Zel. 71; A. Cunn. Precur. n. 223; Raoul, Choix, 38; Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 32; Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 376. A. Cunninghamianum, Col. in Tasmanian Journ. Nat. Sci. (1845) 6. Polystichum coriaceum, Schott; Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. ii. 37. Polypodium adiantiforme, Forst. Prodr. n. 449.
North and South Islands, Stewart Island, Chatham Islands: Abundant in forests throughout, often climbing up trees. Sea-level to 2000 ft. A widely distributed fern, found in temperate Australia, Polynesia, South Africa, Mauritius, and in America stretching from Cuba to Patagonia. page 1001 |
| 7. | A. aristatum, Swartz, Syn. Fil. 53.—Rhizome long, stout, creeping, clothed with linear-subulate ferruginous scales. Stipes 9–18 in. long, stout, densely clothed towards the base with linear fibrillose scales. Fronds scattered, 1–2 ft. long by 9–12 in. broad, ovate-deltoid, acuminate, coriaceous, dark-green and glossy, both surfaces naked, 3-pinnate; rhachis glabrous or sparingly paleaceous. Primary pinnæ stipitate, lanceolate, acuminate, pinnate or 2-pinnate; the lowest pair the longest, 6–9 in. long, lanceolate-deltoid, with an elongated basal pinnule. Pinnules obliquely ovate-lanceolate or narrow ovate-rhomboid, irregularly dentate with the teeth ending in bristle-like points. Sori rather small, in 2 rows near the midrib. Indusium smooth, flat, orbicular or rarely slightly reniform.— Hook. Sp. Fil. iv. 27; Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 376; Hook, ana Bak. Syn. Fil. 255; Benth. Fl. Austral. vii. 757; Thoms. N.Z. Ferns, 80. Polystichum aristatum, Presl. Tent. Pterid. 83 (not of Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. ii. 37). Polypodium aristatum, Forst. Prodr. n. 448.
Kermadec Islands: Sunday Island, abundant, MacGillivray, T. F. C. A most abundant Polynesian plant, also found in tropical Australia, Malaya, India, China, Japan, and South Africa. |