Cheilanthes covillei
Cheilanthes villosa
Coville's lip fern
villous lip fern
short-creeping, usually 2–4 mm diam.;
scales usually uniformly dark brown to black or rarely with narrow, light brown margins, linear-lanceolate, straight to slightly contorted, strongly appressed, persistent.
compact, 4–8 mm diam.;
scales mostly bicolored, with broad, well-defined, dark, central stripe and narrow, light brown margins, linear-lanceolate, straight to slightly contorted, loosely appressed, persistent.
clustered, 5–30 cm;
vernation noncircinate.
clustered, 7–30 cm;
vernation noncircinate.
dark brown, rounded adaxially.
usually dark brown, rounded adaxially.
lanceolate to ovate-deltate, 3–4-pinnate at base, 1.5–5 cm wide;
rachis rounded adaxially, somewhat scaly, not pubescent.
oblong-lanceolate to ovate, 3–4-pinnate at base, 1.5–5 cm wide;
rachis rounded adaxially, with scattered filiform to lanceolate scales, not pubescent.
round to oblong, beadlike, the largest 1–3 mm, abaxially glabrous or with a few small scales near base, adaxially glabrous.
round to oval, beadlike, the largest 1–2 mm, abaxially nearly glabrous except for a few coarse hairs, adaxially villous with coarse, unbranched hairs.
not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair not conspicuously larger than adjacent pair, usually equilateral, appearing glabrous (or somewhat scaly) adaxially.
not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair not conspicuously larger than adjacent pair, usually equilateral, appearing villous adaxially.
marginal, weakly differentiated, 0.05–0.25 mm wide.
marginal to obscurely inframarginal, slightly differentiated, 0.05–0.25 mm wide.
± continuous around segment margins.
± continuous around segment margins.
containing 64 spores.
containing 32 spores.
green adaxially for most of length;
abaxial scales multiseriate, ovate-lanceolate, deeply cordate at base, with overlapping basal lobes, conspicuous, the largest 0.4–1.5 mm wide, strongly imbricate, usually concealing ultimate segments, ciliate only on basal lobes.
green adaxially for most of length;
abaxial scales multiseriate, ovate to lanceolate, shallowly cordate at base, often with overlapping basal lobes, conspicuous, the largest 0.4–1.5 mm wide, strongly imbricate, often concealing ultimate segments, erose-dentate, not ciliate.
= 2n = 90, apogamous.
= 60.
Cheilanthes covillei
Cheilanthes villosa
Cheilanthes covillei can be difficult to distinguish from the closely related C. intertexta and C. clevelandii; it differs from these two species in having glabrous blades and costal scales ciliate only on the basal lobes. Cheilanthes covillei is occasionally misidentified as C. fendleri because the cilia of the scales are often obscure; it is distinguished from the latter species by having rigid, dark brown stem scales that are strongly appressed. Cheilanthes covillei hybridizes with C. parryi and C. newberryi to form rare, sterile diploids known as C. × parishii Davenport and C. × fibrillosa (Davenport) Davenport ex Underwood, respectively. A third sterile diploid hybrid with C. fendleri has recently been discovered in central Arizona (M. D. Windham, unpublished).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Cheilanthes villosa is an apogamous triploid of unknown parentage. Although there are reports of hybridization between C. villosa and C. eatonii (D. B. Lellinger 1985), recent gene exchange is unlikely because both taxa are apogamous in North America. Morphologically intermediate specimens (tentatively called C. pinkavii in T. Reeves 1979) are included here in C. eatonii, pending further study and valid publication of Reeve's epithet.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
CA
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
