''Gleichenia alpina'', commonly known as alpine coral-fern, is a small
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 exce ...
species that occurs in
Tasmania
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, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
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and
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. It grows in alpine and subalpine areas with moist soils and is a part of the
Gleichrniaceae family.
The species was first formally described by botanist
Robert Brown in 1810.
Description
''Gleichenia alpina'' is a common native ground-fern that grows in boggy alpine and subalpine vegetation. It has the typical ''Gleichenia'' foliage, which is repeatedly dichotomously divided before ending in pinnate laminas. The distinctive feature is deep pouches densely covered with hairs on the underside of the pinnules.
''Gleichenia alpina'' is characterised by comparatively short
frond
A frond is a large, divided leaf. In both common usage and botanical nomenclature, the leaves of ferns are referred to as fronds and some botanists restrict the term to this group. Other botanists allow the term frond to also apply to the lar ...
axes and the dense orange-brown (becoming pale) scales that obscure the abaxial surface of the lamina. Its strongly pouched ultimate segments mean it can be confused only with ''G. dicarpa''. From that species, ''G. alpina'' can be distinguished by: the absence of stellate scales with patent branches on the β costae; the strongly convex adaxial surface of the ultimate segments; only 0–1 (rarely 2) pseudodichotomous forks in the pinnae (excluding growth from pinna buds); the absence of accessory leaflets around the rachis bud; and pinna buds that usually extend, often more than once.
In contrast, ''G. dicarpa'' has: stellate scales with patent branches (curled in Chatham Islands’ plants) on the
abaxial and/or