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''Sticherus cunninghamii'', also known as umbrella fern, is a New Zealand endemic fern.
The species is named after English botanist and explorer Allan Cunningham; its Māori names include rarauheriki, waekura and tapuwae-kōtuku.
Umbrella fern is characterised by its drooping fronds that resemble an umbrella, distinct from the fan-like fronds of its relative '' S. flabellatus''. The angle between the first branches on the frond is narrow, about 44°. Fronds are 15–30 cm long with an erect stipe between 20 and 50 cm high, but reaching 1 m at times.The last, longest leaf segment on the frond is up to 18 mm, and unlike in ''S. flabellatus'' is not serrated. Leaves are divided into two halves which fan out, with a dormant bud between them which sometimes grows into additional pinnae, especially in plants growing along the ground rather than up banks. The underside of the leaf segments is white or 
This fern grows in patches from a long creeping rhizome, which is much-branched and is covered with dark brown scales. The fronds characteristically rise into two or three tiers of "umbrellas".
''S. cunninghami'' is endemic to New Zealand, and is common in the
Museum of New Zealand Plant Collection. Collected by Charles Jeffs, 1888
/ref> The plant is very difficult to transplant and cultivate.
glaucous
''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), g ...
, and is covered with broad scales which are brown in the centre and fade to pale on the margins. Sori are found in one row each side of the midrib, have around five sporangia, and spores measure 29–31 μm by 14–15 μm.
This fern grows in patches from a long creeping rhizome, which is much-branched and is covered with dark brown scales. The fronds characteristically rise into two or three tiers of "umbrellas".
''S. cunninghami'' is endemic to New Zealand, and is common in the North Island
The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...
, particularly in the central volcanic area, but rarer in the eastern and southern parts of the South Island
The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...
and in Stewart Island
Stewart Island ( mi, Rakiura, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across the Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a total land ar ...
and the Auckland Islands. It occurs from lowland to montane forest, usually along shaded stream banks and road cuttings where it can form the main ground cover.
The fern is used in traditional Māori rongoā herbal medicine; one specimen collected in 1888 for King Tāwhiao is annotated "the sap of this fern is a powerful narcotic".Umbrella fern, Sticherus cunninghamii (Hook.) ChingMuseum of New Zealand Plant Collection. Collected by Charles Jeffs, 1888
/ref> The plant is very difficult to transplant and cultivate.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q7616159 Gleicheniales Ferns of New Zealand