Kingdom Plantae Class Polypodiopsida Family Thelypteridaceae Scientific name Thelypteris puberula | Division Polypodiophyta Order Blechnales Genus Thelypteris Rank Species | |
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Similar Thelypteris pilosa, Thelypteris nevadensis, Thelypteris yaucoensis, Thelypteris kunthii, Thelypteris dentata | ||
Thelypteris puberula is a species of fern known by the common name showy maiden fern. The variety Thelypteris puberula var. sonorensis is known by the common name Sonoran maiden fern.
It is native to southwestern North America and Central America, from the foothills and deserts of California and Arizona south through Mexico to Costa Rica. It grows in canyons, streambanks, and seeps in several types of habitat. It is found at 50–550 metres (160–1,800 ft) in elevation.
Description
Thelypteris puberula produces a number of regularly shaped, equally spaced green leaves with many long, flat, lance-shaped leaflets. One leaf may exceed 1.5 meters in length, and the thick leaflets may be over 20 centimeters long. The undersides of the leaflets are hairy, especially on the indusia covering the spore-bearing sori.