Cheilanthes intertexta
Cheilanthes microphylla
coastal lip fern
southern lip fern
short-creeping, usually 3–7 mm diam.;
scales usually bicolored, with broad, well-defined, dark, central stripe and narrow, light brown margins, linear-lanceolate, straight to slightly contorted, strongly appressed, persistent.
long-creeping, 1–3 mm diam.;
scales uniformly brown or slightly darker at base, linear-lanceolate, straight to slightly contorted, loosely appressed, persistent.
clustered, 4–25 cm;
vernation noncircinate.
usually scattered, 8–40 cm;
vernation noncircinate.
dark brown, rounded adaxially.
black, rounded adaxially.
lanceolate to ovate-deltate, usually 3-pinnate at base, 1–4 cm wide;
rachis rounded adaxially, with scattered scales and sparse monomorphic pubescence.
lanceolate to linear-oblong, 2-pinnate-pinnatifid to 3-pinnate at base, 1.5–6 cm wide;
rachis rounded adaxially, lacking scales, with dimorphic pubescence, abaxially sparsely hirsute, adaxially covered with tortuous, appressed hairs.
oblong to ovate, beadlike, the largest 1–3 mm, abaxially densely covered with branched hairs and small, ciliate scales, adaxially with scattered branched hairs or glabrescent.
narrowly elliptic to elongate-deltate, not beadlike, the largest 3–7 mm, abaxially and adaxially sparsely hirsute to glabrescent.
not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair not conspicuously larger than adjacent pair, usually equilateral, appearing glabrous to sparsely pubescent adaxially.
not articulate, dark color of stalk continuing into pinna base, basal pair often slightly larger than adjacent pair, ± equilateral, appearing glabrous or sparsely pubescent adaxially.
marginal, weakly differentiated, 0.05–0.25 mm wide.
marginal to obscurely inframarginal, somewhat differentiated, 0.1–0.4 mm wide.
± continuous around segment margins.
somewhat discontinuous, often concentrated on interrupted lateral lobes.
containing 64 spores.
containing 64 spores.
green adaxially for most of length;
abaxial scales multiseriate, ovate-lanceolate, deeply cordate at base, with overlapping basal lobes, conspicuous, the longest 0.4–1 mm wide, imbricate, often concealing ultimate segments, long-ciliate, cilia usually confined to proximal 1/2.
black adaxially for most of length;
abaxial scales absent.
= 116.
Cheilanthes intertexta
Cheilanthes microphylla
Preliminary isozyme analyses support D. B. Lellinger's (1985) suggestion that Cheilanthes intertexta is a fertile allotetraploid hybrid between C. gracillima and C. covillei. It is morphologically most similar to the latter parent (see comments under C. covillei), but it is occasionally confused with C. gracillima, with which it apparently hybridizes to form sterile intermediates that have been called C. gracillima var. aberrans M. E. Jones. Cheilanthes intertexta may also be confused with C. clevelandii, with which it is partially sympatric. In addition to the characters given in the key, C. intertexta is distinguished from closely related sexual species by having larger spores averaging more than 55 µm in diameter.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
In the flora, the primarily Caribbean Cheilanthes microphylla is known from a small number of localities on the Florida peninsula. This restricted distribution, combined with its smaller stems, mostly black costae, and 64-spored sporangia, helps to separate Cheilanthes microphylla from the closely related C. alabamensis.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
CA
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
