synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
''Cyathea humilis'', is a species of
tree fern
The tree ferns are arborescent (tree-like) ferns that grow with a trunk elevating the fronds above ground level, making them trees. Many extant tree ferns are members of the order Cyatheales, to which belong the families Cyatheaceae (scaly tree ...
native to
Kenya
)
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, capital = Nairobi
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, largest_city = Nairobi
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Uluguru Mountains
The Uluguru mountains are a mountain range in eastern Tanzania, named after the Luguru tribe. The main portion of the Uluguru mountains is a ridge running roughly north-south and rising to altitude at its highest point. On the main Uluguru rang ...
in
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
, where it grows in wet forest at an altitude of 1100–2000 m. The trunk of this plant is erect and 2–3 m tall. Fronds are
pinnate
Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...
and 1–2 m in length. Dead fronds are often retained in the typical variety (''A. h.'' var. ''humilis''), forming an irregular skirt around the trunk. The rachis and stipe are light brown in colouration.
Scale
Scale or scales may refer to:
Mathematics
* Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points
* Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original
* Scale factor, a number ...
s are present towards the base of the stipe. They are dark, glossy, and have narrow, fragile edges. Sori occur at the forks of veins and are protected by thin, reduced
indusia
A sorus (pl. sori) is a cluster of sporangia (structures producing and containing spores) in ferns and fungi. A coenosorus (plural coenosori) is a compound sorus composed of multiple, fused sori.
Etymology
This New Latin word is from Ancient Gr ...
.
Two distinct varieties of ''A. humilis'' are known. ''A. h.'' var. ''pycnophylla'', the lesser known form, is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the Mogodoro district of Tanzania. This variety differs in the shape of its fronds and does not retain them as a skirt around its trunk. Further study is needed to more precisely determine the
taxonomic
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
status of these plants.
Large and Braggins (2004) note that the
holotype
A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...
of ''A. humilis'' (first described as ''Cyathea humilis'') is "almost certainly a juvenile of ''Cyathea stuhlmannii''", a
taxon
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...
also described by
Hieronymus
Hieronymus, in English pronounced or , is the Latin form of the Ancient Greek name (Hierṓnymos), meaning "with a sacred name". It corresponds to the English given name Jerome.
Variants
* Albanian: Jeronimi
* Arabic: جيروم (Jerome)
* Basqu ...
. Since the specific
epithet
An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...
''humilis'' is older, it takes precedence, and ''C. stuhlmannii'' should be regarded as a later synonym.
The name ''Alsophila humilis'' J.Sm. is a synonym of '' Cyathea villosa''.