''Cosentinia'' is a genus of

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 ...

s in the subfamily

Pteridoideae ''Pteridoideae'' is one of the five subfamilies of the fern family Pteridaceae. This subfamily contains about 14 genera and around 400 species. Taxonomy Phylogeny The following diagram shows a likely phylogenic relationship between Pteridoideae ...

of the family

Pteridaceae Pteridaceae is a family of ferns in the order Polypodiales, including some 1150 known species in ca 45 genera (depending on taxonomic opinions), divided over five subfamilies. The family includes four groups of genera that are sometimes recogni ...

with a single species ''Cosentinia vellea''. Its native distribution ranges from the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

through Europe, northern Africa and

Western Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Ana ...

to the west Himalayas in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

Subspecies

, the ''Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World'' recognized two subspecies: *''Cosentinia vellea'' subsp. ''bivalens'' (Reichstein) Rivas Mart. & Salvo *''Cosentinia vellea'' subsp. ''vellea''

References

Pteridaceae Monotypic fern genera {{Pteridaceae-stub