Elaphoglossum aschersonii Hieron.

Vasco, A., 2011, Taxonomic revision of Elaphoglossum subsection Muscosa (Dryopteridaceae), Blumea 56 (2), pp. 165-202 : 169-171

1. Elaphoglossum aschersonii Hieron. — Fig. 1a , 2; Map 2

Elaphoglossum aschersonii Hieron. (1905) 555. — Type: Lehmann 5074 (lecto B, designated here; iso F, GH, US), Colombia, Cauca, auf Bäumen in parkartigen Wäldern auf dem Hochland von Popayán, 1600–1800 m, s.d.

Elaphoglossum drewianum Mickel (1987) 318, f. 3a–c. — Type: Steyermark et al. 101131 (holo NY; iso VEN), Venezuela, Apure, a lo largo del Río Talco (Oira) y sus afluentes, en páramo entre Alto de Cruces y Tierra Negra, Páramo de Pata de Judío, en la frontera Colombo-Venezolana, 30 km al S de San Vicente de la Revancha, 32 km al S de Alquitrana, SE del Páramo del Tamá , SW de Santa Ana, [7°23'N, 72°23'W], 3000–3200 m, 19 Jan. 1968.

Plants epiphytic. Rhizome 4–6 mm wide, compact and erect; rhizome scales 4–7 mm long, linear-lanceolate, orange to brown, subentire, with small teeth, base truncate to cordate, apex acuminate to filiform. Sterile leaves 15– 37 cm long, approximate; phyllopodia present, not obscured by the petiole-base scales; petiole 7–18 cm long, 3/7–3/5 the length of the sterile leaves; larger petiole scales 3 –5.5 mm long, scattered to dense, spreading, lanceolate, light brown to dark brown, or mottled, always darker at the point of attachment, margin lighter, erose, base cordate, apex acute; smaller petiole scales 0.2–1.5 mm long, dense, not imbricate, appressed, oblanceolate to round, light brown to black, or mottled, darker at the point of attachment, margin lighter, erose to ciliate, base cordate, apex acute; lamina 8 –19 by 2.3– 4 cm, oblanceolate to obovate, chartaceous, glabrescent with age, base broadly cuneate to truncate, apex obtuse; veins 1– 2 mm apart, at an angle of 70° with respect to the costa; adaxial laminar scales 1–1.5 mm long, scattered, oblanceolate to round, white to dark brown, sometimes darker along the costa, ciliate, base cordate, apex acute; abaxial laminar scales 0.2 –1 mm long, absent to scattered, not elevated above the surface of the lamina, oblanceolate to round, light brown to dark brown or mottled, darker at the point of attachment, margin lighter, ciliate, base cordate, apex acute; abaxial costal scales 0.2 –1.5 mm long, dense, not imbricate, appressed, oblanceolate to round, dark

1 mm

Fig. 2 Elaphoglossum aschersonii Hieron. a. Habit; b. rhizome scale; c. larger petiole scale; d. smaller petiole scale; e. abaxial laminar surface; f. abaxial costal scale; g. adaxial laminar surface; h. adaxial laminar scale; i. fertile lamina (a –h: Atehortúa 1240; a (fertile leave) and i: Callejas 6412, all HUA).

brown to black or mottled, sometimes with lighter margin, erose to ciliate, base cordate to short-stalked, apex acute; marginal scales 0.5 –1 mm long, dense, not elevated above the surface of the lamina, oblanceolate to round, light brown, erose to ciliate, base cordate to short-stalked, apex acute. Fertile leaves longer than the sterile leaves; petiole 3/5– 5/7 the length of the fertile leaves; petiole scales same as the ones of the sterile leaves; lamina 6 –16 by 0.8–1.5 cm, narrowly elliptic to elliptic, coriaceous, glabrescent with age, base broadly cuneate, apex obtuse; adaxial laminar scales 0.5 –1.5 mm long, dense, imbricate, oblanceolate to round, light brown to dark brown, sometimes darker along the costa, ciliate, base cordate, apex acute; abaxial costal scales 0.5 – 2 mm long, dense, imbricate, appressed, oblanceolate to round, light brown to black or mottled, sometimes with lighter margin, erose to ciliate, base cordate, apex acute; intersporangial scales 0.5 –1 mm long, scattered, oblanceolate, orange, ciliate, base cordate, apex acute. Spores papillate, without ridges.

Distribution — Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador; 1500 –3200 m. Epiphytic in montane forests.

Selection of other specimens examined. COLOMBIA, Antioquia, Mun. Urrao,carretera entre Urrao y Caicedo,sitio El Chuscal,cerca al Páramo de Frontino , paraje conocido como El 15, [6°27'N, 76°46'W], 2900 m, 17 May 1985, Atehortúa et al. 1240 ( HUA) ; an Bäumen in mässig geschlossenen Gebirgswäldern über La Ceja und am Río de Piedras , [6°42'N, 75°45'W], 2500 m, 20 Sept.1883, Lehmann 3084 (B-20 0069845, syntype of E. aschersonii ) . Boyacá, Mun. Arcabuco, vereda Peñas Blancas, hacienda Las Delicias , [5°45'N, 73°26'W], 2600 m, 11 May 1996, Fernández-Alonso et al. 14130 ( COL, HUA) . Caldas, Mun. Manizales, Monteleón , Cordillera Central, 2250 m, 8 Sept. 1984, De Fraume 262 ( HUA) . Cauca, bei ‘ Los Motilones’ Westgehänge des Sotará , 3000 m, 21 Feb.1884, Lehmann 3676 (B-20 0069844, syntype of E.aschersonii ) ; forests of Río Huangubio in highlands of Popayán , 1700–2000 m, May 1886, Lehmann BT 873 ( NY, US) . Cundinamarca, Monte Redondo , 1700–2000 m, 15 July 1953, Idrobo 1491 ( COL, NY, US) . Magdalena, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Quebrada Indiana, 10°59'N, 73°58'W, 1600 m, 30 Aug. 1972, Kirkbride 1990 ( COL, NY) . Quindío, Mun. Salento, carretera Salento-Cocora ,[4°38'N, 75°34'W], 2000–2200 m, 10 Sept.1989, Vélez et al. 535 ( COL) . Risaralda, Mun. Pereira, Parque regional Ucumarí , vereda La Pastora, trail from El cedro to La Pastora, 4°02'N, 75°30'W, 1900 m, 19 Feb. 1990, Croat 70763 ( COL) . – ECUADOR, Morona-Santiago, road from Limón to Azogues , 3°00'35"S, 78°30'25"W, 1980 m, 5 Mar.2005, Moran et al. 7645 ( NY) . Napo, Cerro Antisana, NE Borja , [0°28'S, 78°08'W], 1706 m, 29 Aug. 1960, Grubb et al. 1387 ( NY) .

Notes — Elaphoglossum aschersonii can be distinguished from all other species in subsect. Muscosa by its epiphytic habit, compact, erect rhizomes, petioles with the larger scales scattered to dense, oblanceolate to obovate laminae glabrous to glabrescent, and abaxial costal scales appressed, round, dark brown to black. Elaphoglossum bellermannianum , a similar species, can be distinguished by petioles densely scaly, laminae oblong to oblanceolate, and scales typically obscuring the surface of the lamina. The abaxial costal scales of E. bellermannianum can range from oblanceolate to round and are generally brown to black or mottled with a white margin.

Elaphoglossum aschersonii is similar to E. novogranatense in its epiphytic habitat, appressed dark brown abaxial costal scales, evident veins, and papillate spores; however, E. aschersonii differs in having compact rhizomes, easily visible phyllopodia, erose larger petiole scales, and obovate laminae. In contrast, E. novogranatense has short-creeping rhizomes, phyllopodia obscured by the petiole-base scales, ciliate larger petiole scales, and oblanceolate to lanceolate laminae.

Figures

Map 2 Distribution of Elaphoglossum aschersonii Hieron.

Fig. 1 Spores of Elaphoglossum subsect. Muscosa. a. E. aschersonii; b. E. bellermannianum; c. E. corderoanum; d. E. engelii; e. E. gardnerianum; f. E. glabrescens; g. E. laxisquama; h. E. lehmannianum; i. E. muscosum; j. E. novogranatense; k. E. oculatum; l. E. oreophilum; m. E. quisqueyanum; n. E. ruficomum; o. E. yatesii (a: Moran 7645, NY; b: Meier 302, NY; c: Holm-Nielsen 3260, AAU; d: Sánchez 465, US; e: Wacket 186, UC; f: Buchtien 2725, US; g: Vásquez 28162, NY;h: Ruíz-Terán 976, NY;i: Underwood 3212, NY;j: Vasco 746, NY; k: Hutchison 1629, UC;l: Holm-Nielsen 19071, AAU; m: Zanoni 20917, NY;n: Sagástegui 12091, NY; o: Navarrete 1402, NY). — Scale bars = 10 µm.