Dear Dr. Raja,
For nearly all ferns one must see the frond-base, not just upper halves as
in so many field photos. It is one of the reasons why a herbarium-specimen
photo is often better. For Thelypteris species, one also needs to know how
the rhizome was, thick-erect with fronds together; thick horizontal, fronds
together at apex; or thin long-creeping with fronds separate. This I can't
see in the photo.
However, I can just see the decreasing basal pinnae in one of the central
fronds. Enough to confirm the general impression that it is Thelypteris
(Christella) dentata.
If so, it should have a horizontal, thickish rhizome, with fronds together
at one end; the basal pair or two pairs of veinlets between each pinna-lobe
should anastomose beneath the sinus between lobes and the lower-surface of
the costa should have rather obvious scattered stiff hairs, not very long.
But in south India T. dentata is obviously a complex and there seems to be
another taxon, close to T. dentata, but with a thin, long-creeping rhizome
with more separate fronds arising along it, and the costal hairs are
shorter - and more usually two or two-and-a-half pairs of veinlets
anastomosing. I thnk this is T. (Christella) meeboldii - and I collected
it in the Shevaroys, Palnis and Kerala, and have seen it from Andhra. Dr.
Sledge found thta his Sri Lankan T. meeboldi had spinulose-ridged spores,
unlike T. dentata, but if I understood the type correctly (no rhizome - of
course!!) it seems to be the long, thin rhizome species. And some seem to
have spinulose spores some not. See page 453 of my Annotated Checklist of
Indian Pteridophytes vol. 1 (2016). That long-rhizomed thing is only in
South India, not the north. But I just can't be sure yet if it is
meeboldii or not! My living plant from Kerala soon died unfortunately, so
I only grew it for about a year. It is a different species from T.
dentata anyway.
Perhaps you could tell me what the rhizome was like and we could make a
more informed judgement? In general I think your plant looks to be normal
T. dentata.
Best wishes,
Chris Fraser-Jenkins
On Thu, 4 Mar, 2021, 2:51 pm Bharathi raja, <[email protected]>
wrote:
> All,
> Taken in the month of Feb in Talakona forests,AP on the way to the
> waterfalls.
>
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