Cranfillia fluviatilis

Cranfillia fluviatilis, synonym Blechnum fluviatile, is a fern known in the Māori language as kiwikiwi. A herbaceous plant, C. fluviatilis is a "hard fern" of the genus Cranfillia in the family Blechnaceae. It was identified by Patrick Brownsey in 1979.[2] Other common names are star fern, creek fern, kawakawa and kiwakiwa.[3][2]

Cranfillia fluviatilis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Suborder: Aspleniineae
Family: Blechnaceae
Genus: Cranfillia
Species:
C. fluviatilis
Binomial name
Cranfillia fluviatilis
(R.Br.) Gasper & V.A.O.Dittrich[1]
Synonyms[1]
  • Blechnum fluviatile (R.Br.) Lowe
  • Blechnum nudius Copel.
  • Lomaria fluviatilis (R.Br.) Spreng.
  • Lomaria rotundifolia Colenso
  • Spicanta fluviatilis (R.Br.) Kuntze
  • Stegania fluviatilis R.Br.

Morphology

Ladderlike fronds of C. fluviatilis measure up to 50 cm (20 in) long. Growing in a distinctive ground-hugging rosette shape, its fertile fronds – dark brown and spiky – stand upright from the centre, while the drooping sterile fronds with their nearly round leaflets, form the rosette.[3] As the parent plant ages it develops a short trunk central to a surrounding colony.

Range and ecology

The hardy C. fluviatilis requires moist, shaded conditions for optimal growth. A small ground fern, the species is native to New Zealand and southeast Australia, a syntype common throughout the country in damp, shady areas in acidic, moist and boggy soil,[4] beside streams in forest areas.[3] This fern species occurs throughout much of New Zealand's forests, including much of the forested area of North Island; west, north and south coasts of South Island; and Stewart Island/Rakiura; moreover, it occurs in parts of the coastal forests of southeast Australia. Example understory flora associates in the mixed broadleaf/podocarp forests of Rakiura include Austroblechnum durum.[5]

History

It was collected by William Colenso in December 1841, at the precise locality of woods near Poverty Bay in the North Island.[2]

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References
  1. Hassler, Michael & Schmitt, Bernd (November 2019), "Cranfillia fluviatilis", Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World, 8.11, retrieved 2019-12-22
  2. Blechnum fluviatile (R.Br.) Salomon; syntype of Lomaria rotundifolia Colenso - Collections Online - Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington, NZ
  3. "Blechnum fluviatile". Archived from the original on 2013-02-06. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  4. BBC - Gardening - Plants - Plant Finder - Blechnum fluviatile 'Klwaklwak'
  5. C. Michael Hogan. 2009. Crown Fern: Blechnum discolor, Globaltwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg Archived 2012-02-13 at the Wayback Machine
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