Notholaena meridionalis
Southern Cloakfern
Carl Rothfels
Introduction
Nomenclatural and taxonomic confusion resulted in members of this distinctive species long bearing the name N. affinis (Mickel and Smith, 2004). The latter species is found in northeastern Mexico and is likely not closely related to the southern plants here referred to as N. meridionalis (following Mickel and Smith, 2004). Morphological (Mickel and Smith, 2004) and plastid DNA sequence data (Rothfels, unpublished) instead suggest a close relationship between N. meridionalis and N. lemmonii.
Notholaena meridionalis occurs from extreme southern Mexico (Oaxaca) to Costa Rica, on dry rocky slopes, cliffs, and rock outcrops (including both limestone and igneous substrates).
Characteristics
This species does not occur with any other linear-leaved farinose species, so confusion is unlikely. It most closely resembles the more northern N. lemmonii, from which it differs in its leaf stalk; the leaf stalk of N. lemmonii is grooved, but rounded in N. meridionalis.
References
Giauque, M. F. A. 1949. Wax glands and prothallia. American Fern Journal 39:33-35.
Mickel, J. T., and A. R. Smith. 2004. The Pteridophytes of Mexico. The New York Botanical Garden Press, New York.
NatureServe. 2008. NatureServe Explorer, Arlington, Virginia. www.natureserve.org/explorer/
Rothfels, C. J., M. D. Windham, A. L. Grusz, G. J. Gastony, and K. M. Pryer. 2008. Toward a monophyletic Notholaena (Pteridaceae): Resolving patterns of evolutionary convergence in xeric-adapted ferns Taxon 57:712-724.
Tryon, R. M. 1956. A revision of the American species of Notholaena. Contributions from the Gray Herbarium 179:1-106.
Windham, M. D. 1993a. Notholaena. Pages 143--149 in Flora of North America (Flora of North American Editorial Committee, ed.) Oxford University Press, New York.
Windham, M. D., and G. Yatskievych. 2003. Chromosome studies of cheilanthoid ferns (Pteridaceae: Cheilanthoideae) from the western United States and Mexico. American Journal of Botany 90:1788-1800.
Wollenweber, E. 1984. Exudate flavonoids of Mexican ferns as chemotaxonomic markers. Rev. Latinoamer. Quim. 15:3-11.
Title Illustrations
| Scientific Name | Notholaena meridionalis |
|---|---|
| Location | Costa Rica, Prov. de Guanacaste |
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Identified By | C.J.Rothfels |
| Image Use |
 This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
|
| Copyright | © 2008 |
| Scientific Name | Notholaena meridionalis |
|---|---|
| Location | Costa Rica, Prov. de Guanacaste |
| Comments | And Carl's abused hand. Note how tightly curled the pinnae are (with their undersides exposed). |
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Identified By | C.J.Rothfels |
| Image Use |
This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
|
| Copyright | © 2008 |
| Scientific Name | Notholaena meridionalis |
|---|---|
| Location | Costa Rica, Prov. de Guanacaste, Palo Verde National Park |
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Identified By | C.J.Rothfels |
| Life Cycle Stage | sporophyte |
| Image Use |
This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
|
| Copyright |
© 2008 Carl Rothfels
|
About This Page
Carl Rothfels
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Carl Rothfels at
Page copyright © 2008 Carl Rothfels
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- First online 23 December 2008
- Content changed 23 December 2008
Citing this page:
Rothfels, Carl. 2008. Notholaena meridionalis . Southern Cloakfern. Version 23 December 2008 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Notholaena_meridionalis/133612/2008.12.23 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/
