Burke: Aspidotis densa

	Aspidotis densa
	Oregon cliff brake, Indian's dream, podfern
Habit	Small perennials, terrestrial or lithophytes, 8-25 cm; stems somewhat compact, creeping, branched, tips ascending; scales typically dark brown, commonly with narrow portion of margins a lighter color, lanceolate, margins entire.
Leaves	Leaves monomorphic or somewhat dimorphic; fertile leaves more erect than sterile ones, on long petioles usually 2-5 times longer than blades and dark reddish brown, fertile blades with more ascending pinnae and thinner segments than sterile blades; blade 3-4-pinnate, 2-10 cm, slightly leathery; ultimate segments linear, 3-8 mm; midrib prominent on lower surface.
Spores	Sori of mature blades continuous along length of segments but not at apex; indusia linear, margins erose or with 10-35 shallow and regular teeth; spores 64 per sporangia, dark brown, tetrahedral-globose, netted.

	Aspidotis densa
Habitat	Cliff crevices and moist, rocky slopes, foothills to near timberline, often on serpentine
Distribution	Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, western Wyoming, and northern Utah; disjunct in Quebec. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin	Native
Conservation status	Not of concern
Web links	Local floras: BC, CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Aspidotis densa

Oregon cliff brake, Indian's dream, podfern

Habit

Small perennials, terrestrial or lithophytes, 8-25 cm; stems somewhat compact, creeping, branched, tips ascending; scales typically dark brown, commonly with narrow portion of margins a lighter color, lanceolate, margins entire.

Leaves

Leaves monomorphic or somewhat dimorphic;

fertile leaves more erect than sterile ones, on long petioles usually 2-5 times longer than blades and dark reddish brown, fertile blades with more ascending pinnae and thinner segments than sterile blades;

blade 3-4-pinnate, 2-10 cm, slightly leathery; ultimate segments linear, 3-8 mm;

midrib prominent on lower surface.

Spores

Sori of mature blades continuous along length of segments but not at apex;

indusia linear, margins erose or with 10-35 shallow and regular teeth; spores 64 per sporangia, dark brown, tetrahedral-globose, netted.

Aspidotis densa

Habitat

Cliff crevices and moist, rocky slopes, foothills to near timberline, often on serpentine

Distribution

Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, western Wyoming, and northern Utah; disjunct in Quebec.

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Origin

Native

Conservation status

Not of concern

Web links