Lecanopteris

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title: "Lecanopteris" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["lecanopteris", "epiphytes", "symbiosis", "taxa-named-by-caspar-georg-carl-reinwardt", "fern-genera", "myrmecophytes"] description: "Genus of ferns" topic_path: "general/lecanopteris" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecanopteris" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of ferns ::

| image = Lecanopteris curtisii - Lyman Plant House, Smith College - DSC04267.JPG | image_caption = Lecanopteris curtisii | taxon = Lecanopteris | authority = Reinw. | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = See text.

Lecanopteris is a genus of ferns in the family Polypodiaceae, subfamily Microsoroideae, according to the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I). They have swollen hollow rhizomes that provide homes for symbiotic ants. All are epiphytic plants that naturally occur from Southeast Asia to New Guinea. Several species are in commerce, being grown as houseplants and greenhouse curiosities.

Taxonomy

Phylogeny

The monophyletic genus Lecanopteris has been divided into two sub-genera, Lecanopteris and Myrmecopteris. All the species have rhizomes associated with ants. Subgenus Lecanopteris was monophyletic, and Myrmecopteris was paraphyletic. A 2019 molecular phylogenetic study suggested that the genus was related to three other clades, treated as genera, related as shown in the following cladogram.

|label1=Lecanopteris s.l. |1={{clade |1=Bosmania |2={{clade |1=Dendroconche |2={{clade |1=Zealandia |2=Lecanopteris s.s.

, the Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World recognizes the segregate genera; other sources do not.

Species

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Lecanopteris_mirabilis_caudex.jpg" caption="The rhizome of ''Lecanopteris mirabilis''"] ::

, the Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World recognized the following species in Lecanopteris s.s.

• Lecanopteris balgooyi Hennipman
• Lecanopteris carnosa (Reinw.) Blume
• Lecanopteris celebica Hennipman
• Lecanopteris crustacea Copel.
• Lecanopteris darnaedii Hennipman
• Lecanopteris deparioides (Ces.) Baker
• Lecanopteris holttumii Hennipman
• Lecanopteris luzonensis Hennipman
• Lecanopteris mirabilis Copel.
• Lecanopteris pumila Blume
• Lecanopteris sarcopus (Teijsm. & Binn.) Copel.
• Lecanopteris sinuosa (Wall. ex Hook.) Copel.
• Lecanopteris spinosa Jermy & T.Walker

References

• Lecanopteris

References

1. (January 2020). "Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World".
2. (1993). "Rhizome structure and evolution in the ant-associated epiphytic fern ''Lecanopteris'' Reinw. (Polypodiaceae)". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society.
3. (2003). "Systematics of the Ant-Fern Genus Lecanopteris (Polypodiaceae): Testing Phylogenetic Hypotheses with DNA Sequences". Systematic Botany.
4. PPG I. (2016). "A community-derived classification for extant lycophytes and ferns". Journal of Systematics and Evolution.
5. (2009). "Polypods exposed". Bulletin of the American Fern Society.
6. (2019). "Phylogenetic and Morphological Analyses Support the Resurrection of ''Dendroconche'' and the Recognition of Two New Genera in Polypodiaceae Subfamily Microsoroideae". Systematic Botany.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::