Family Lygodiaceae Rank Species | Division Pteridophyta Genus Lygodium Higher classification Lygodium | |
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Similar Lygodium, Lygodium japonicum, Schizaeaceae, Floracarus perrepae, Neomusotima conspurcatalis | ||
Old world climbing fern lygodium microphyllum
Lygodium microphyllum (commonly known as, variously, climbing maidenhair fern, Old World climbing fern, small-leaf climbing fern, or snake fern) is a climbing fern originating in tropical Africa, South East Asia, Melanesia and Australia. It is an invasive weed in the US States of Florida and Alabama where it invades open forest and wetland areas. The type specimen was collected in the vicinity of Nabúa, on the Island of Luzon in the Philippines by Luis Née.
Contents
- Old world climbing fern lygodium microphyllum
- How to identify old world climbing fern lygodium microphyllum
- Distribution
- Effects on the environment
- Containment
- Ethnobotany
- References
How to identify old world climbing fern lygodium microphyllum
Distribution
Lygodium microphyllum is native to Africa (in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania (including the Zanzibar Archipelago), Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa); Asia (in Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, the provinces of Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan of China, and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan); Australia (in Northern Territory, Queensland, northeast New South Wales, and northern Western Australia); and the Pacific Islands of Fiji, and Micronesia's Mariana Islands and Caroline Islands.
Lygodium microphyllum has become naturalized in the Caribbean and the southeastern United States.
Effects on the environment
Lygodium microphyllum causes problems in the environments where it is invasive. The plant damages wetland ecosystems, harming endangered species. The fern's ability to grow up and over trees and shrubs and to form dense horizontal canopies allows it to cover whole communities of plants reducing native plant diversity. Old World climbing fern can grow in many diverse ecosystem. Lygodium microphyllum poses problems for fires, both natural and man-made, because it can lead fire into the tree canopy killing trees. The fern is rapidly spreading in South Florida's public conservation lands.
Containment
Recently, the USDA approved the use of insects to keep the fern contained. Insects (Austromusotima camptozonale, Neomusotima conspurcatalis) and mites (Floracarus perrepae) have been released in several state parks to control the fern. Though some populations were devastated by bout of cold weather. However, Recently, reports of new activity have been made.
Ethnobotany
Lygodium microphyllum has been used locally in folk medicine to treat skin ailments and problems, swelling and dysentery.
