Maxonia

Plants hemiepiphytic. Stems long-creeping and climbing trees, stolons absent. Leaves strongly dimorphic, fertile leaves greatly contracted, evergreen. Petiole ± equaling length of blade, base not swollen; vascular bundles more than 3, arranged in an arc, ± round in cross section. Blade deltate, 3–4-pinnate-pinnatifid, gradually reduced distally to pinnatifid apex, somewhat leathery. Pinnae not articulate to rachis, segment margins dentate to lobed; proximal pinnae largest or nearly so, petiolulate, ± equilateral or inequilateral, basiscopic side with pinnules longer than on acroscopic side; costae adaxially deeply grooved, grooves continuous from rachis to costae to costules; indument of transparent hairs along costae on both sides, also with a few linear scales abaxially on costae. Veins free, simple or forked. Sori in 1 row between midrib and margin, round; indusia round-reniform with shallow sinus, persistent. Spores brownish, spiny to broadly rugose. x = 41.

Distribution

Tropical.

Discussion

Species 1 (1 in the flora).

Selected References

Christensen, C. 1916. Maxonia, a new genus of tropical American ferns. Smithsonian Misc. Collect. 66(9): 1--4.

Moran, R. C. 1987. Monograph of the neotropical fern genus Polybotrya (Dryopteridaceae). Bull. Illinois Nat. Hist. Surv. 34: 1--138.

Walker, T. G. 1972. The anatomy of Maxonia apiifolia: A climbing fern. Brit. Fern Gaz. 10: 241--250.

Lower Taxa

Maxonia apiifolia