Herbarium JCB

Psilotum nudum (L.) P. Beauv.

Family (Christenhusz et al, 2011) : PSILOTACEAE
Family (As per The Plant List) : Psilotaceae
Species : Psilotum nudum
Species Name (as per The Plant List) : Psilotum nudum (L.) P. Beauv.
Collection Nos : CS 11113, CS 4928
Collector(s) Name : C. J. Saldanha; C.J.Saldanha
Key identification features : Rhizome short, creeping, branched, terete, dark brown; densely covered with dark brown, slender, unicellular, deciduous hairs; roots absent. Stem erect or arching, mainly unbranched stem, more or less tetragonal with few grooves and ridges, iso or aniso dichotomously branched, upto eight times at the distal part; scale leaves regularly arranged in alternate pairs throughout the branches, pale green, narrowly triangular to lanceolate; stem dark green, glabrous all over except the presence of scale leaves. Sporangia trilocular, synangia borne at the axis of scale leaves, sessile, dehisced by vertical split; spores numerous, monolete, elongated, reniform, oblong or ellipsoid.
Habit : Herb-Epiphytic
Native : North America; South America; Tropical Asia; Tropical Africa; Hawaii
Comments : Grows epiphytically on base of trees.
Conservation Status : Near Threatened (NT) (Jenkins, 2008)
Collection Locality : Hettur; Palni hills
Distribution Locality : Bangalore; Mysore; Uttara Kannada
Floras referred : Fraser-Jenkins, Taxonomic revision of Indian Subcontinental Pteridophytes 2008; Rajagopal & Bhat, Pteridophytic flora of Karnataka State- 1998; Manickam V.S & Irudayaraj V. (1992)- Pteridophyte flora of W.Ghats, South India