Moorea Research Station: U.C. Berkeley

A Key to the Pteridophytes of Moorea

Andrew G. Murdock, 2002

1	Leaves with single, unbranched veins	2
	Leaves with multiple and/or branched veins	6
2	Spores of two kinds, naked, bracts ± uniform, stems erect	Selaginella banksii
	Spores all of one kind, naked or in capsules (synangia)	3
3	Sporangia naked, stems forked and freely braching, strobili nodding	4
	Sporangia in capsules (synangia)	5
4	Plant terrestrial, strobili simple	Lycopodiella cernua
	Plant epiphytic, strobili long, forking	Huperzia phlegmaria
5	Stems unbrached, leaves obvious	Tmesipteris gracilis
	Stems forked, triangular, leaves scale-like	Psilotum nudum
6	Aquatic with clover-like leaves	Marsilea polycarpa
	Terrestrial, epiphytic, or lithophytic without clover-like leaves	7
7	Huge ferns (fronds to several meters long but not tree ferns), with fleshy stipules and stems to several cm thick	8
	Fronds without stipules	9
8	Sporangia of each sorus contiguous but not fused, pinnule tips ± sterile, common	Angiopteris evecta
	Sporangia fused, forming synangia, stipe frequently spotted, uncommon	Marattia salicina
9	Sporangia without annulus	10
	Sporangia with annulus	11
10	Terrestrial, sterile segment basally cordate	Ophioglossum reticulatum
	Epiphytic, sterile segment elongate	Ophioglossum pendulum
11	Lamina one cell thick between veins, sori on end of veins	12
	Lamina thick enough to have epidermis and other tissue	17
12	Rhizome creeping or scandent, coarse, fronds frequently over 5 cm long	13
	Rhizome creeping, filiform, fronds rarely over 5 cm long	14
13	Fronds clear green, thin	Trichmnanes societense
	Fronds dark green, harsh	Trichomanes dentatum
14	Fronds peltate	Trichomanes tahitense
	Fronds pinnatifid or pinnate	15
15	Fronds hairy, sometimes glaucous	Trichomanes pallidum
	Fronds neither hairy nor glaucous	16
16	Fronds with submarginal false vein	Trichomanes bipunctatum
	Fronds lacking submarginal false vein	Trichomanes humile
17	Blades dichotomously or pseudodichotomously compound	18
	Blades not dichotomous, annulus longitudinal	20
18	Sori dorsal, annulus transverse, forming thickets on dry slopes	Dicranopteris linearis
	Sporangia or sori in specialized spikes	19
19	Fronds erect, fan-shaped and branching	Schizaea dichotoma
	Rachis scandent, of indefinite length, often climbing	Lygodium reticulatum
20	Fronds simple, entire or nearly so	21
	Fronds pinnatifid or more divided	27
21	Sporangia on a greatly narrowed linear apical segment	Belvisia spicata
	Sporangia not on a linear apical segment	22
22	Leaves grass-like with sorus along each margin	Haplopteris elongata
	Leaves not grass-like, sori various	23
23	Sori irregularly following veins	24
	Sori round, roundish, or, if linear, oblique to costae	25
24	Costa nearly obsolete, frond broad, apex frequently forked	Antrophyum reticulatum
	Stipe not winged, apex acute or acuminate	Antrophyum plantagineum
25	Sori oblique to costae, with linear indusia, forming ìbirdís nestsî	Asplenium australasicum
	Sori round or roundish	26
26	Fronds slender and elongate, with scales	Pyrrosia serpens
	Fronds without scales, large	Microsorum punctatum
27	Sporangia spread over surface, not in sori	28
	Sporangia in dicrete sori	32
28	Sori on distal pinnae, others sterile, pinnae frequently with irregular margins	Acrostichum aureum
	Sori on wholly fertile fronds	29
29	Plants terrestrial, rhizome not climbing into trees	Bolbitis lonchophora
	Plants hemiepiphytic, rhizome climbing into trees	30
30	Leaflet margin cartilaginous	Lomariopsis brackenridgei
	Margins not cartilaginous	31
31	Veins of sterile blades reticulate	Lomagramma tahitensis
	Veins of sterile blades free	Teratophyllum wilkesianum
32	Sporangia in linear elongate sori	33
	Sori round, roundish, marginal, or following veins	41
33	Sori parallel to costae	34
	Sori oblique to costae	35
34	Fertile and sterile fronds alike	Blechnum orientale
	Fertile fronds contracted with much narrower pinnae	Blechnum raiateensis
35	Some sori double or bent across vein (or some such thing)	36
	Sori all simple, never curved across vein	38
36	Something	Diplazium grantii
	Something else	37
37	This thing	Diplazium harpeodes
	That thing	Diplazium ellipticum
38	Fronds pinnate	39
	Fronds bipinnatifid to more divided	40
39	Pinnae linear, spurred, margins dentate, apices obtuse	Asplenium tenerum
	Pinnae rhomboid-deltoid, spur rounded, margins serrate, apices acute	Asplenium polyodon
40	Fronds bipinnatifid, pinnae long acute, margins crenulate	Asplenium caudatum
	Fonds at least tripinnate, resembling a large filmy fern	Asplenium gibberosum
41	Sori following veins	Pityrogramma calomelanos
	Sori round, roundish, or marginal	42
42	Sori marginal or submarginal, not round	43
	Sori round or roundish	50
43	Exindusiate or indusium opening towards margin, not formed by reflexed margin	44
	Indusium formed by reflexed margin; plants terrestrial	45
44	Exindusiate, frond pinnatifid or pinnae adnate by entire base; plants epiphytic	Prosaptia subnuda
	Indusium opening towards margin, superficially similar to Adiantum spp.	Lindsaea propinqua
45	Fronds seriate on a long, creeping rhizome; sori on tips of free veins	Hypolepis tenuifolia
	Fronds clustered; sori on marginal vein or inside indusia	46
46	Sori on marginal vein connecting vein-tips; ultimate segments with distinct midrib, segment neither fan-shaped nor trapeziform	47
	Sori in the inside of indusium; ultimate segments fan-shaped or trapeziform, lacking distinct midrib	48
47	Segments up to 15 mm long, lowest pinnae tripinnatifid	Pteris tripartita
	Larger segments over 30 mm long	Pteris comans
48	Ultimate segments fan-shaped	Adiantum raddianum
	Ultimate segments trapeziform	49
49	Ultimate segments 3-4 cm wide; stems shiny black, lacking hairs	Adiantum trapeziforme
	Ultimate segments <2 cm wide; stems brown with minute hairs	Adiantum hispidulum
50	Tree ferns	51
	Not tree ferns	52
51	Costal scales with dark spreading teeth; stipe dark brown; stipe scales with apical setae, not glaucous	Alsophila tahitensis
	Costal scales lacking; stipe light brown; stipe scales with marginal setae, glaucous	Sphaeropteris medullaris
52	Sori without indusia or rarely with vestigial indusia	53
	Sori consistently with indusia	59
53	Fronds pinnate or pinnatifid	54
	Fronds bipinnatifid or decompound	55
54	Without free included veinlets	Plesioneuron attenuatum
	Free included veinlets present, rarely with vestigial indusia	Tectaria tahitensis
55	Veins free, fronds rarely over 10 cm long	Ctenopteris blechnoides
	Veins reticulate, fronds over 10 cm long	56
56	Sori in regular rows, up to 5 mm in diameter, yellow	57
	Sori not in regular rows	58
57	Pinnae more or less alternate, lobes rounded, frond less than 1 m	Microsorum grossum
	Pinnae more or less opposite, fronds commonly over 1 m long	Microsorum membranifolium
58	Sori superficial, fronds rarely over 50 cm long, margin regular, lobes acute	Microsorum commutatum
	Sori slightly sunken, fronds to over 1 meter long, margin highly irregular	Microsorum x maximum
59	Veins anastomosing	60
	Veins free	61
60	Lowest pinnae reduced and remote; without sessile spherical glands on lower surfaces	Sphaerostephanos invisus
	Lowest pinnae reduced to rudiments; with sessile spherical glands on lower surfaces	Sphaerostephanos subpectinatus
61	Stipes articulate	62
	Stipes not articulate	65
62	Blades 1-pinnate; indusia fixed by base only	63
	Blades 2-pinnate or more; indusia fixed by base and sides	64
63	Frond coriaceous	Pachypleuria pectinata
	Frond not coriaceous	Arthropteris palisotii
64	Indusia cylindrical, truncate	Davallia solida
	Indusia ovate with free apex	Davallia denticulata
65	Blades 2-pinnate or more, pinnae not articulate to rachis; without stolons	66
	Blades 1-pinnate, pinnae articulate to rachis; with stolons	69
66	Indusia peltate	Arachniodes aristata
	Indusia not peltate, fixed	67
67	Indusia fixed by base and sides	Microlepia scaberula
	Indusia reniform, fixed by sinus	68
68	Minor rachises bearing ciliate, whitish scales	Macrothelypteris polypodioides
	Minor rachises bearing entire, brown scales	Ctenitis sciaphila
69	Indusia broadly reniform	Nephrolepis cordifolia
	Indusia circular or nearly so	70
70	Sori near the margins, all parts scaly	Nephrolepis hirsutula
	Sori not marginal, scales lacking	Nephrolepis exaltata

Adapted from:

Murdock, A. G. and A. R. Smith. 2002. Pteridophytes of Moorea, French Polynesia, with a new species, Tmesipteris gracilis. Pacific Science, in press.

Copeland, E. B. 1932. Pteridophytes of the Society Islands. Bernice P. Bishop
Museum Bulletin 93: 1–86.