To identify a fern with a bipinnate-pinnatifid frond, begin with the first question and continue until you get a "yes" answer. If another set of questions follows, use the same procedure. Fern speak: a blade is the upper part of the frond with green leaf-like things growing on it; pinna (plural pinnae) are those green leaf-like things.
1. Are the pinnae wedgeshaped, coarsely toothed, and leathery (found only in pineland)? YES, or 1. Is it large and the blade branches into more branches? YES, or 1. Are the blades bipinnate-pinnatifid to tripinnate (very feathery-looking -- each cut leaf has more cuts -- three times cut)? YES There are no more bipinnate-pinnatifid frond questions. If it is a bipinnate-pinnatifid frond, the answer to one of the above three questions will be a "yes." |
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Bipinnate-pinnatifid frond: large, blade branches into more branches, lobes of pinnae evenly rounded, smooth edged 1. Are the fronds stiff and each blade branches into only three more? YES, or 1. Are the fronds somewhat soft and each blade branches into three more, which then branch again? YES There are no more bipinnate-pinnatifid frond questions in this section. If it is a bipinnate-pinnatifid frond where the blade branches into more branches, the answer to one of the above two questions must be a "yes." |
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Bipinnate-pinnatifid frond: the blade is three times cut at the base (tripinnate) of each pinna 1. Are the pinnae parallel, the whole frond appears flat, and has a very delicate lacy appearance? YES, or 1. Are the pinnae at an angle to the rachis (main stem), almost overlapping eachother, giving the blade a "stepped" appearance? YES. There are no more bipinnate-pinnatifid frond questions in this section. If it is a bipinnate-pinnatifid frond and the some of the lower blades are tripinnate at their bases, the answer to one of the above two questions must be a "yes." |
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Anemia adiantifolia
(Pine Fern)
bipinnate-pinnatifid frond
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short-creeping, clothed with dark hairs |
| Spores | borne on two erect, separate pinnae rising from the stipe, just below the sterile part of the blade |
| Veins | free |
| Growth | pineland, shaded areas |
| Similar | none here |
Pteridium aquilinum
(Bracken Fern, Lacy Bracken Fern)
bipinnate-pinnatifid frond
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long-creeping, subterranean deep in the soil, hairy |
| Spores | completely line edges of pinnae |
| Veins | free, forking |
| Growth | terrestrial; open areas (both woods and meadows) in full sun, weedy, abundant |
| Similar | Pteris tripartita (Giant Brake Fern) branches into three fronds per stem, and each of those three branches again |
Pteris tripartita (exotic)
(Giant Brake Fern)
bipinnate-pinnatifid frond
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ascending, stout |
| Spores | U-shaped line of spores line the pinnule margins (photo above right) |
| Veins | netted |
| Growth | terrestrial, moist woods |
| Similar | Pteridium aquilinum (Bracken Fern) has only three branches per frond stem |
Ctenitis sloanei
(Florida Tree Fern, Red-Hair Comb Fern)
bipinnate-pinnatifid to tripinnate frond
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ascending with red-brown scales -- in mature ferns, almost like a short trunk (right photo) |
| Spores | parallel to pinnae midvein, spaced about half way between midvein and margin |
| Veins | free |
| Growth | hammocks, cypress swamps, usually where subsurface limestone is near ground level |
| Similar | Thelypteris torresiana (Mariana Maiden Fern)
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Macrothelypteris
torresiana (exotic)
(Mariana Maiden Fern, Torres' Fern)
bipinnate-pinnatifid to tripinnate frond
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short-creeping |
| Spores | along pinnae midvein, spaced about halfway between midvein and margin |
| Veins | free |
| Growth | moist woods; susceptible to cold and dry periods |
| Similar | Ctenitis sloanei (Florida Tree Fern)
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