Flora of North America species comparison

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Polystichum imbricans subsp. imbricans
Photo is of parent taxon

imbricate fern, imbricate sword fern, narrow-leaf sword fern, rock sword fern
Stems

decumbent to ascending.
Leaves

stiffly erect, 2.5–5 dm.
Pinnae

lanceolate-oblong, less than 5 times longer than wide, twisted out of plane of blade (adaxial surfaces facing upward like Venetian blinds), base usually cupped, apex cuspidate.
Indusia

entire.

Polystichum imbricans subsp. imbricans
Habitat Rooted at base of boulders or in cliff crevices in drier sites of mesic montane forests
Elevation 0–2500 m (0–8200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA; BC
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Polystichum imbricans subsp. imbricans grows in the Coast Ranges and the Sierra-Cascade axis. It is isolated in the Wallowa Mountains of eastern Oregon.

Sun forms of Polystichum munitum are often mistaken for P. imbricans; characteristics of the distal petiolar scales and indusial margins are more reliable than gross morphologic features for distinguishing them. Polystichum imbricans has narrow distal petiolar scales that fall off early; P. munitum has wide distal petiolar scales (the largest more than 1 mm wide) that are persistent. Polystichum imbricans hybridizes readily with P. munitum, the hybrids usually being sterile but in some places forming hybrid swarms because of partial fertility of the hybrids (D. H. Wagner 1979). The hybrids with P. californicum are discussed under that species.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 2.
Parent taxa Dryopteridaceae > Polystichum > Polystichum imbricans
Sibling taxa
P. imbricans subsp. curtum
Synonyms P. munitum subsp. nudatum
Name authority (D. C. Eaton) D. H. Wagner
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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