Notholaena grayi
Notholaena neglecta
Gray's cloak fern
Maxon's cloak fern
scales concolored to weakly bicolored, margins usually brown, very narrow and poorly defined, thin, ciliate-denticulate.
scales strongly bicolored, margins brown, broad and well defined, thin, ciliate-denticulate.
5–20 cm.
4–15 cm.
brown, equal to or somewhat shorter than blade, rounded adaxially, glandular-farinose, bearing scattered hairs and scales.
black, equal to or somewhat longer than blade, rounded adaxially, bearing scattered glands and a few scales near base.
linear-lanceolate, 2-pinnate-pinnatifid, 3–6 times longer than wide, abaxially with conspicuous whitish farina and dull, light brown, lanceolate, entire scales scattered along rachises and costae, adaxially distinctly glandular;
basal pinnae equal to or slightly larger than adjacent pair, ± equilateral, proximal basiscopic pinnules not greatly enlarged.
narrowly deltate-pentagonal, 3–4-pinnate, 1–2 times longer than wide, abaxially with conspicuous pale yellow farina, scales absent, adaxially glabrous to sparsely glandular;
basal pinnae much larger than adjacent pair, strongly inequilateral, proximal basiscopic pinnules greatly enlarged.
sessile, broadly adnate to costae;
segment margins slightly recurved, rarely concealing sporangia.
sessile to subsessile, narrowly adnate to costae or free;
segment margins strongly revolute, often concealing sporangia.
containing 16 or 32 spores.
containing 32 spores.
= 2n = 90, apogamous.
Notholaena grayi
Notholaena neglecta
Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).
Notholaena grayi comprises two cytotypes here treated as subspecies. Sexually reproducing diploid populations (N. grayi subsp. sonorensis) are concentrated in southern Arizona and western Mexico. Apogamous triploids (N. grayi subsp. grayi) are more widespread, extending from Arizona to central Texas and northeastern Mexico. Isozyme analyses indicate that subsp. grayi is an autotriploid derivative of subsp. sonorensis (G. J. Gastony and M. D. Windham 1989).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Notholaena neglecta is closely related to N. californica and may have been involved in the origin of polyploids within that complex. Populations occurring in the flora are composed of apogamous triploids, but a sexually reproducing diploid cytotype has been found in Nuevo León, Mexico (M. D. Windham, unpublished data).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Most sporangia containing 16 spores; spores generally more than 55 µm. | subsp. grayi |
1. Most sporangia containing 32 spores; spores generally less than 55 µm. | subsp. sonorensis |
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