''Asplenium ruprechtii'', which goes by the common name Asian Walking Fern, is a rare, hardy, low-lying
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
native to East Asia. It is a close relative of ''
Asplenium rhizophyllum
''Asplenium rhizophyllum'', the (American) walking fern, is a frequently-occurring fern native to North America. It is a close relative of '' Asplenium ruprechtii'' (syn: ''Camptosorus sibiricus'') which is found in East Asia and also goes by the ...
''
(syn: ''Camptosorus rhizophyllus''
) which is found in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
and also goes by the common name of walking fern.
Encyclopædia Britannica Online
/ref> The species should not be confused with ''Asplenium sibiricum'' which is a synonym of ''Diplazium sibiricum
''Diplazium sibiricum'', otherwise known as the Mole-Ladder is a species of fern. It is found in Siberia, across Russia, in Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in ...
''.
Description
The name ''walking fern'' was derived from the way the fern spreads. The underside of each leaf contain sori, and when the tip of the leaf touches the ground, new planlets sprout, creating a "walking" effect.
The evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...
, undivided, slightly leathery leaves are triangular and taper to a thin point. Sori, the spore-bearing structures, are distributed in clusters along the veins on the underside of the leaves. The plant can be found in the shady areas of limestone ledges and in limy forest places. ''Asplenium ruprechtii'' is smaller than its relative, ''Asplenium rhizophyllum'', and usually has cuneate bases to its fronds, whereas ''A. rhizophyllum'' usually has cordate frond bases.
Taxonomy
A global phylogeny of ''Asplenium'' published in 2020 divided the genus into eleven clades, which were given informal names pending further taxonomic study. ''A. ruprechtii'' belongs to the "''A. cordatum'' subclade" of the "''Schaffneria'' clade". The ''Schaffneria'' clade has a worldwide distribution, and members vary widely in form and habitat. There is no clear morphological feature that unites the ''A. cordatum'' subclade; the sister species of ''A. ruprechtii'' is ''A. rhizophyllum'', which shares an undivided leaf blade and a proliferating tip, while the other three species are scaly spleenworts of dry habitats in Africa and the Middle East.
References
*
Sources
Aspleniaceae ''Asplenium ruprechtii'' Kurata in Namegata
The International Plant Names Index
Hardy Fern LibraryPlant Delights Nursery
ruprechtii
Ferns of Asia
{{Polypodiales-stub