Athyrium flexile

Athyrium flexile, commonly known as Newman's lady-fern or the flexile lady fern,[2] is a taxon of which is fern endemic to Scotland, it has been regarded as a species but it is considered to be an ecotype of the Alpine lady fern.[3] This fern is pale to yellow green in colour and has elliptic, double pinnate leaves which are deciduous.[4] This ecotype grows more quickly and matures faster than the Alpine lady fern in substrates which have low levels of nutrients and is outcompeted by the Alpine lady fern in other situations.[3]

Newman's lady-fern
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Division: Polypodiophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Suborder: Aspleniineae
Family: Athyriaceae
Genus: Athyrium
Species:
A. flexile
Binomial name
Athyrium flexile
Tausch ex Opiz[1]

It is an upland variety typically found above 750 metres (2,460 ft) on screes made up of siliceous rocks such as quartzite and granite in the Highlands where it is found at only four sites.[5][6] It is a snow-tolerant species, the snow lie protecting it from frosts. This small, deciduous fern is normally recorded from cool, shaded, north easterly to north westerly facing scree-slopes or where there is scree of large blocks of acidic rocks, particularly in areas where the snow lies late into the Spring and there is melt-water trickling down gullies.[7]

Athyrium flexile was first described in 1853[7] but may be a stunted variety of Alpine Lady-fern A. distentifolium, a single gene mutation accounting for the difference between the two.[8] It is considered by some experts to be a variant of Alpine Lady-fern (Athyrium distentifolium' var. flexile) rather than a distinct species.[1][5][9]

Regarded as nationally scarce and vulnerable, more than 75% of the population is found in the high Cairngorm mountains including the boulder field plateau of Braeriach and in upper Glen Doll. It is found as high as 900 metres (3,000 ft) in Glen Einich.[9][10]

References
  1. "The Scottish Biodiversity List - Species & Habitat Detail" Archived October 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine Biodiversity Scotland. Retrieved 29 June 2008.
  2. "Athyrium distentifolium var. flexile • Flexile Lady Fern". Roger Golding. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. "Biology of Athyrium distentifolium and A. flexile in Scotland". The British Library. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  4. "Athyrium distentifolium var. flexile". Fern ID The Ferns Identifier for the British Isles. Arwystli Networks. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  5. "Species Action Plan: Newman's Lady Fern (Athyrium flexile)" Archived October 31, 2007, at the Wayback Machine BAP. Retrieved 29 June 2008.
  6. "Habitat account - Rocky habitats and caves: 8110 Siliceous scree of the montane to snow levels (Androsacetalia alpinae and Galeopsietalia ladani)" Archived 13 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine. JNCC. Retrieved 1 June 2008.
  7. "Athyrium flexile". Online Atlas of British and Irish Flora. Biological Records Centre. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  8. McHaffie, H. S.; Legg, C. J.; and Ennos, R. A. (December 2001) "A Single Gene with Pleiotropic Effects Accounts for the Scottish Endemic Taxon Athyrium distentifolium var. flexile" New Phytologist, 152 No. 3 pp. 491-500. Retrieved 29 June 2008.
  9. Shaw, Philip and Thompson, Des (eds.) (2006) The Nature of the Cairngorms: Diversity in a changing environment. Edinburgh. The Stationery Office. ISBN 0-11-497326-1. pp. 221 and 233-34.
  10. "Altitudinal limits of British and Irish vascular plants" Archived 2007-04-04 at the Wayback Machine (rtf) Botanical Society of the British Isles. Retrieved 29 June 2008.
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