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POLYPODIACEAE

POLYPODY FAMILY

Sherry Whitmore and Alan R. Smith

Perennial, on plants, rocks, in rock crevices, less often in soil, humus, or on dunes; rhizome short- to long-creeping, branched, glaucous to not, scaly
Leaves ± alike or of 2 kinds, fertile and sterile; petiole thin to thick, straw-colored or green to brown or black, generally jointed to persistent knob on rhizome; blade generally simple to 1-pinnate, membranous to fleshy or leathery; veins free to fused, generally forked
Sporangia: sori round to elongate, rarely linear, generally 1 per areole, in 1–several rows on each side of segment midrib; indusium 0; spores generally ± elliptic, ± smooth to coarse-tubercled or -ridged, scar linear
Genera in family: ± 46 genera, ± 650 species: worldwide, especially Old World tropical. Numbers of genera, species depend on treatment; many species cultivated.

POLYPODIUM

POLYPODY

Sherry Whitmore

Rhizome long-creeping; scales lanceolate, ± brownish, 1-colored or often with darker central area or midstripe
Leaves 0.2–10(20) dm, ± alike or fertile > sterile; petiole glabrous to scaly; blade 1-pinnate to generally deeply pinnately lobed, rarely simple and unlobed, glabrous to hairy, glandular or not, scales on lower surface midrib near base generally lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, generally ± brown; veins free to fused
Sporangia: sori in 1 row on each side of segment midrib, generally raised, sometimes including branched or unbranched, glandular hairs, sporangium-like structures, or shriveled sporangia; spores yellow
Species in genus: ± 160 species: generally New World, tropical, some temp, few boreal
Etymology: (Latin: many feet, from rhizome)
Reference: [Whitmore & Smith 1991 Madroño 38:233–248]
50% or more malformed spores indicates hybrid involving 2 or more species in CA.

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