Cheilanthes eatonii |
Cheilanthes gracillima |
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Eaton's lip fern |
lace fern, lace lipfern |
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Stems | 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. |
short-creeping, 4–8 mm diam.; scales uniformly brown or with poorly defined, dark, central stripe, linear-lanceolate, straight to slightly contorted, loosely appressed, persistent. |
Leaves | clustered, 6–35 cm; vernation noncircinate. |
clustered, 5–25 cm; vernation noncircinate. |
Petiole | dark brown, rounded adaxially. |
dark brown, rounded adaxially. |
Blade | oblong-lanceolate, 3–4-pinnate at base, 1.5–5 cm wide; rachis rounded adaxially, with scattered linear-lanceolate scales and monomorphic pubescence. |
linear-oblong, 2–3-pinnate at base, 1–2.5 cm wide; rachis rounded adaxially, with scattered linear scales, not pubescent. |
Ultimate segments | oval to round, beadlike, the largest 1–3 mm, abaxially densely tomentose, adaxially pubescent with fine, unbranched hairs or glabrescent. |
oblong or rarely oval, beadlike, the largest 1.5–3 mm, abaxially densely covered with branched hairs and small, ciliate scales, adaxially with scattered, branched hairs or glabrescent. |
Pinnae | not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair not conspicuously larger than adjacent pair, usually equilateral, appearing tomentose to glabrescent adaxially. |
not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair not conspicuously larger than adjacent pair, usually equilateral, appearing sparsely pubescent or glabrous adaxially. |
False indusia | marginal to obscurely inframarginal, somewhat differentiated, 0.05–0.25 mm wide. |
marginal, slightly differentiated, 0.05–0.25 mm wide. |
Sori | ± continuous around segment margins. |
± continuous around segment margins. |
Sporangia | containing 32 spores. |
containing 64 spores. |
Costae | green adaxially for most of length; abaxial scales multiseriate, lanceolate to linear, truncate or subcordate at base, without overlapping basal lobes, conspicuous, the largest 0.4–0.7 mm wide, loosely imbricate, not concealing ultimate segments, erose-dentate, rarely with 1–2 cilia at base on a few scales. |
green adaxially for most of length; abaxial scales multiseriate, linear, truncate at base, inconspicuous, the largest 0.1–0.4 mm wide, loosely imbricate, not concealing ultimate segments, long-ciliate, cilia usually confined to base. |
n | = 2n = 90, 120, apogamous. |
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Cheilanthes eatonii |
Cheilanthes gracillima |
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Phenology | Sporulating summer–fall. | Sporulating summer–fall. |
Habitat | Rocky slopes and ledges, found on a variety of substrates including limestone and granite | Cliffs and rocky slopes, usually on igneous substrates |
Elevation | 300–3000 m (1000–9800 ft) | 800–3000 m (2600–9800 ft) |
Distribution |
AR; AZ; CO; NM; OK; TX; UT; VA; WV; Mexico; Central America in Costa Rica |
CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; AB; BC
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Discussion | As here circumscribed, Cheilanthes eatonii is a variable species comprising apogamous triploid and tetraploid cytotypes of unknown parentage. It includes plants previously identified as C. castanea and C. pinkavii (ined.). Type specimens of C. eatonii and C. castanea are quite distinct morphologically, but most plants here included within C. eatonii are intermediate between these two extremes (T. Reeves 1979). Because there is no clear morphologic break, C. castanea is placed here in synonymy under C. eatonii pending further study. Reports of hybridization between C. eatonii and C. villosa (D. B. Lellinger 1985) are based on specimens from western Texas and southern New Mexico that appear to be intermediate between these taxa in several characters. T. Reeves (1979) applied the name C. pinkavii to these specimens; that name has never been validly published. Formal recognition of this taxon is deferred pending completion of a biosystematic study of the C. eatonii complex as a whole. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Cheilanthes gracillima is a well-marked species, but it apparently hybridizes with C. intertexta (see reticulogram) to produce plants of intermediate morphology with malformed spores that have been called C. gracillima var. aberrans M. E. Jones (A. R. Smith 1974). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 2. | FNA vol. 2. |
Parent taxa | Pteridaceae > Cheilanthes | Pteridaceae > Cheilanthes |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | C. castanea, C. eatonii | Myriopteris gracillima |
Name authority | Baker: in Hooker & Baker, Syn. Fil. 4: 140. (1867) | D. C. Eaton: in Emory, Rep. U.S. Mex. Bound. 2: 234. (1859) |
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