Burke: Polystichum braunii vs. Polystichum kruckebergii

	Polystichum braunii	Polystichum kruckebergii
	Braun's holly-fern	holly fern, Kruckeberg's sword fern fern
Habit		Terrestrial perennials with ascending stems.
Leaves		Leaves monomorphic, erect, 1-2.5 dm, lacking bulblets; petiole 1/5 length of leaf or less, with sparse covering of light brown scales that become smaller distally; blade linear, 1-pinnate-pinnafitid, base narrowed; pinnae rhombic-ovate to short-falcate, proximal pinnae somewhat triangular, pinnae overlapping and twisted slightly out of blade plane, 0.5-1.5 cm, base oblique, acroscopic auricle distinct, margins shallowly cut to barely dentate or finely serrated, teeth spreading and spiny at tip, apex acute; microscales lanceolate, confined to costa on bottom surface.
Spores		Indusia entire; spores dark brown.

	Polystichum braunii	Polystichum kruckebergii
Habitat	Moist coniferous forest, often where rocky.	Open slopes, typically among rocks; tolerant of serpentine.
Distribution	Occurring east of the Cascades crest in Washington, where known only from Pend Oreille County; Alaska to northeastern Washington, east to northern Idaho, also from Great Lakes region to northeastern North America; interruptedly circumboreal. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	Occurring in the Olympics and Cascades mountains in Washington; southeast Alaska to California, east to Montana, Idaho, Nevada and Utah. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin	Native	Native
Conservation status	Not of concern	Not of concern
Sibling taxa	P. andersonii, P. californicum, P. californicum × P. munitum, P. imbricans, P. kruckebergii, P. kruckebergii × P. munitum, P. lemmonii, P. lemmonii × P. munitum, P. lemmonii × P. scopulinum, P. lonchitis, P. munitum, P. munitum × P. scopulinum, P. scopulinum	P. andersonii, P. braunii, P. californicum, P. californicum × P. munitum, P. imbricans, P. kruckebergii × P. munitum, P. lemmonii, P. lemmonii × P. munitum, P. lemmonii × P. scopulinum, P. lonchitis, P. munitum, P. munitum × P. scopulinum, P. scopulinum
Web links	Local floras: BC, WA Local Web sites: 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	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

Polystichum kruckebergii

Braun's holly-fern

holly fern, Kruckeberg's sword fern fern

Habit

Terrestrial perennials with ascending stems.

Leaves

Leaves monomorphic, erect, 1-2.5 dm, lacking bulblets;

petiole 1/5 length of leaf or less, with sparse covering of light brown scales that become smaller distally;

blade linear, 1-pinnate-pinnafitid, base narrowed;

pinnae rhombic-ovate to short-falcate, proximal pinnae somewhat triangular, pinnae overlapping and twisted slightly out of blade plane, 0.5-1.5 cm, base oblique, acroscopic auricle distinct, margins shallowly cut to barely dentate or finely serrated, teeth spreading and spiny at tip, apex acute;

microscales lanceolate, confined to costa on bottom surface.

Spores

Indusia entire; spores dark brown.

Polystichum braunii

Polystichum kruckebergii

Habitat

Moist coniferous forest, often where rocky.

Open slopes, typically among rocks; tolerant of serpentine.

Distribution

Occurring east of the Cascades crest in Washington, where known only from Pend Oreille County; Alaska to northeastern Washington, east to northern Idaho, also from Great Lakes region to northeastern North America; interruptedly circumboreal.

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]