''Myriopteris wootonii'', formerly known as ''Cheilanthes wootonii'', is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of fern in the Pteridaceae family (subfamily

Cheilanthoideae Cheilanthoideae is one of the five subfamilies of the fern family Pteridaceae. The subfamily is thought to be monophyletic, but some of the genera into which it has been divided are not, and the taxonomic status of many of its genera and species ...

) with the common name Wooton's lace fern.

Description

''Myriopteris wootonii'' grows fronds from a long creeping

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

with tan to brown scales. The frond (leaf) is 10-20 cm long and 2-3 cm wide with a narrow stem (stipe) 1-2 mm thick. The leaf blade 3 to 4-pinnate and the leaflets are small and nearly round. Their abaxial (lower) surface is concave and densely covered with cilia and lanceolate-linear scales, and their adaxial (top) surface is glabrous. The leaf viewed from above has the general appearance of a flat array of tiny green pebbles, an appearance that is shared by several other ''

Myriopteris ''Myriopteris'', commonly known as the lip ferns, is a genus of cheilanthoid ferns. Like other cheilanthoids, they are ferns of dry habitats, reproducing both sexually and apogamously. Many species have leaves divided into a large number of sma ...

'' species, some with overlapping ranges including '' Myriopteris covillei'' and '' Myriopteris intertexta''.

Range and habitat

''Myriopteris wootonii'' is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It grows in sun on rocky outcrops in mountains at 1600 to 1800 meters elevation.

Taxonomy

Based on plastid DNA sequence analysis, ''Myriopteris wootonii'' is very closely related to '' Myriopteris fendleri.

References

Works cited

* * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q17196568 wootonii Flora of the Southwestern United States Flora of Northwestern Mexico