''Asplenium australasicum'', the bird's nest fern or crow's nest fern, is an epiphytic Australasian species 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 exce ...

in the family

Aspleniaceae The Aspleniaceae (spleenworts) are a family of ferns, included in the order Polypodiales. The composition and classification of the family have been subject to considerable changes. In particular, there is a narrow circumscription, Aspleniaceae ...

Taxonomy

''Asplenium australasicum'' was originally described by English botanist John Smith in 1857 as ''Neottopteris australasica''. He had reclassified the already known '' A. nidus'' in its own genus ''Neottopteris''. Other botanists reclassified the genus as a section, ''Thamnopteris'', within the genus ''

Asplenium ''Asplenium'' is a genus of about 700 species of ferns, often treated as the only genus in the family Aspleniaceae, though other authors consider '' Hymenasplenium'' separate, based on molecular phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences, a different ...

'', and William Jackson Hooker gave it its current binomial name in 1859. Although the section ''Thamnopteris'' is distinctive, defining the species has been difficult as the morphology of the plants is so simple. ''A. australasicum'' has been confused with (and called) ''A. nidus'', and Japanese populations which were considered to be ''A. australasicum'' by their morphology have been found to be genetically distinct and reclassified as a new species, '' A. setori''. A global phylogeny of ''Asplenium'' published in 2020 divided the genus into eleven clades, which were given informal names pending further taxonomic study. ''A. australasicum'' belongs to the "''Neottopteris'' clade", members of which generally have somewhat leathery leaf tissue. While the subclades of this group are poorly resolved, several of them share a characteristic "bird's-nest fern" morphology with entire leaves and fused veins near the margin. Both the 2020 study and a 2015 molecular study found that ''A. australasicum'' is polyphyletic, meaning that some populations were not closely related to others—''A. australasicum'' from Fiji and Vanauatu were not closely related to ''A. australasicum'' from Australia and New Caledonia. Hence a revision with sampling of the species across its range was required to delineate the taxon and identify cryptic species. ''A. australasicum'' forms a clade with the morphologically similar '' A. nidus'' ''

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular c ...

'', but other bird's-nest ferns such as '' A. antiquum'' and '' A. phyllitidis'' form a separate subclade which is not particularly closely related.

Description

''Asplenium australasicum'' grows as shrubby plant, with a rosette of yellow-green fronds which are 60 to 80 cm (24–32 in) long and 3 to 21 cm (1.2–8.4 in) wide. It can be distinguished from ''A. nidus'' by its prominent midrib under its fronds, giving the fronds a keeled appearance. The spores form in parallel lines which run in parallel with the veins and oblique to the midrib.

Distribution and habitat

''A. australasicum'' grows on rocks or as an epiphyte on trees and is native to eastern New South Wales and Queensland. The clumps can reach a large size, with the centre of the fern acting as a reservoir for debris. The colonial botanist

William Woolls William Woolls (30 March 1814 – 14 March 1893) was an Australian botanist, clergyman and schoolmaster. Woolls, the nineteenth child of merchant Edward Woolls, was born at Winchester, England and educated at the grammar school, Bishop's Waltha ...

wrote "... as a caution to fern gatherers, sometimes a species of

black snake Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

coils itself up in the centre" (of the birds nest fern).

Cultivation

''Asplenium australasicum'' specimens were taken from logged areas, which helped them become popular in horticulture. It adapts readily to cultivation, as long as it has good drainage. Poor drainage renders it vulnerable to rotting. It can be grown in a tub or barrel. In cultivation it is occasionally attacked by white

coconut scale ''Aspidiotus destructor'', the coconut scale, is a species of armoured scale insect in the family Diaspididae, found in many tropical and subtropical parts of the world. It is a serious pest of coconut and banana, and attacks a range of other fr ...

on the underside of the fronds.

Uses

Apart from its use as an ornamental plant, bird's nest fern is also a popular vegetable in Taiwan, particularly in the Eastern part of the island where the young emerging fronds are used as a leafy vegetable, from both wild and cultivated plants. The fronds are now also gaining in popularity elsewhere because of the pleasant texture and taste.

References

*DR Drake, WA Whistler, TJ Motley, CT Imada, (1996). ''Rain forest vegetation of'Eua Island, Kingdom of Tonga'', New Zealand journal of botany. * {{Taxonbar, from=Q4235309 australasicum Ferns of Australia Ferns of Oceania Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Flora of the Tubuai Islands Plants described in 1857 es:Asplenium australasicum