Vines and Climbing Plants of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

Vines and Climbing Plants of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands 33
3. Gleichenia rubiginosa Mett., Ann. Sci. Nat.
Bot. Sér. 5, 2: 267. 1864.
Fig. 9. E
SYNONYM: Dicranopteris rubiginosa (Mett.) Maxon
Terrestrial fern. Rhizomes creeping, reddish
brown, with attenuate, ciliate scales at the apex.
Fronds clambering or creeping, 1-2 m in length;
pinnae 2-3 times bifurcate, with a tuft of scales in
the bifurcation; rachis cylindrical, with some
scattered hairs, the primary rachis with proleptic
indeterminate growth, the secondary ones not
developed; pinnae 10-25 cm long, the lower
5. Family LOMARIOPSIDACEAE
Key to the genera
surface glaucous, glabrous except for the main
veins, which are covered with reddish scales or
cilia; secondary pinnules oblong, the apex retuse.
Sori yellowish.
Phenology: Collected in fertile condition in
February and August.
Status: Native, uncommon.
Distribution: Restricted to the highest areas
of the Cordillera Central, in moist disturbed areas,
on roadsides and in forests. Also in mountainous
areas of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
Public forests: Guilarte and Toro Negro
1a. Secondary venation reticulate.................................................................................. 1. Lomagramma
1b. Secondary venation free............................................................................................. 2. Lomariopsis
1. LOMAGRAMMA
Terrestrial ferns; rhizomes elongate, climbing by adventitious roots, covered with scales. Fronds
short-stipitate, dimorphic, the fertile ones with narrower pinnae than the sterile ones; blades pinnate;
pinnae membranaceous, glabrous, with serrate margins and reticulate venation (free only near the
margin); lateral pinnae deciduous by means of a basal articulation; terminal pinna not articulate.
Fertile fronds with sporangia scattered on the abaxial surface, rarely on the margins; indusia absent. A
genus of 20 species, Paleotropical with the exception of L. guianensis, which is widely distributed in
the Neotropics.
1. Lomagramma guianensis (Aubl.) Ching,
Amer. Fern J. 22: 17. 1932.
Fig. 10A-B
BASIONYM: Polypodium guianense Aubl.
Terrestrial fern. Rhizomes climbing by aerial
roots, reddish brown, 3-7 mm wide, with deltoidattenuate
scales, 1-1.5 mm long. Fronds
horizontal or pendulous. Sterile fronds 0.45-1 m
long; stipes 6-20 cm long, dark brown, glabrous
or with some scattered scales; rachis cylindrical
toward the base, narrowly winged toward the
apex; pinnae 20-50, alternate or subopposite,
elliptical to lanceolate, chartaceous, 6-14 × 1-2.3
cm, the apex long-acuminate, the base cuneate,
unequal, the margins serrate, glabrous or with
some scattered hairs on the lower surface; midvein
prominent on both surfaces, secondary venation
reticulate, slightly prominent, yellowish. Fertile
fronds smaller than the sterile ones; pinnae linear,
2-5 × 2-4 mm, the apex obtuse, the base obtuse;
lower surface densely covered with ferruginous
sporangia.
Phenology: Collected in fertile condition in
May.
Status: Native, uncommon.
Distribution: In moist forests at lower and
middle elevations. Also in Cuba, Hispaniola,
Venezuela, French Guiana, and Brazil.
Public forest: Maricao.