Botrychium paradoxum

Botrychium paradoxum is a species of fern in the family Ophioglossaceae[1] known by the common name peculiar moonwort. It is native to North America, where there are scattered occurrences in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.[2]

Botrychium paradoxum

Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Ophioglossales
Family: Ophioglossaceae
Genus: Botrychium
Species:
B. paradoxum
Binomial name
Botrychium paradoxum

This plant is unique among the moonworts. While other species generally produce one fertile frond and one sterile, this species produces only the fertile frond. This frond has two segments, both bearing spores.[3] The plant grows up to 15 centimeters tall. As the leaflike sterile frond is absent, the plant likely obtains much of its energy from mycorrhizae instead of photosynthesis.[2]

This fern grows in the montane, subalpine, and alpine zones in snowfields and western red cedar forests.[3][2]

References
  1. Christenhusz, Maarten J. M.; Zhang, Xian-Chun; Schneider, Harald (2011). "A linear sequence of extant families and genera of lycophytes and ferns" (PDF). Phytotaxa. 19: 7–54.
  2. Botrychium paradoxum. The Nature Conservancy.
  3. Wagner Jr., Warren H.; Wagner, Florence S. (1993). "Botrychium paradoxum". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). 2. New York and Oxford – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
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