Lomariopsis
Distribution
Africa: Uganda (Uganda present), America present, Asia present, Asia-Tropical, Australasia: Queensland (Queensland present), Islands of Indian Ocean present, Pacific present, Throughout the wetter parts of the tropics present, W. Africa present
Throughout the wetter parts of the tropics (America 15 spp., W. Africa&Uganda 10 spp., Islands of Indian Ocean 9 spp., Asia, Malesia, Queensland, and Pacific 10 spp.).
Morphology
The broad ± flattened dorsiventral rhizome, ridged on the dorsal surface with decurrent bases of fronds and bearing roots on the ventral surface is exactly as in Lomagramma. Teratophyllum sect. Polyseriatae differs only in having the bases of stipes a little constricted, not decurrent, and at length deciduous leaving round scars. Young plants of some species of Lomariopsis in other geographic regions differ in having fronds which are fully pinnate from an early stage, the terminal lamina never much larger than the lateral pinnae (e.g. L. sorbifolia and allied species in West Indies; see Holttum, 1940). In West Africa is one species which has simple fronds throughout its life (L. palustris (Hook.) Mett.). In Mauritius L. variabilis (Willd.) Fee has the early simple fronds more or less deeply dissected (they are compar- able to mature sterile fronds of Peltapteris). In all cases there is a gradual transition from the frond-form of young plants to that of adult plants, without sharp distinction between bathyphylls and acrophylls.
Gametophytes have not yet been raised to maturity; for available information see p. 258.
Gametophytes have not yet been raised to maturity; for available information see p. 258.
Taxonomy
The genus was founded by Fee in 1845; he included in it both Lomariopsis and Teratophyllum of the present treatment (except T. articulatum). John Smith cited Acrostichum sorbifolium L. as type species (); the choice of L. cochinchinensis Fee by Holttum in 1932, copied by Copeland (1947) was therefore illegitimate. Most other authors, if they did not follow Hooker in retaining Fee's genus in Acrostichum, united it with Stenochlaena J. Sm. (1841). Hooker () would not recognize most of Fee's species as distinct and included nearly all of them (including those now separated as Teratophyllum) in the single species A. sorbifolium. In Farnkräuter der Erde (1897) Christ included also in this same species (as Lomariopsis sorbifolia) some Asplenioid ferns which have finely dissected fronds in their young stages and simply pinnate in adult condition; in this treatment he was uneritieally followed by Bower (). In Index Filicum () Christensen attempted to distinguish twenty "subspecies (vel species?)" within Stenochlaena sorbifolia. Underwood was the first subsequent author to attempt to characterize the species (); he recognized Lomariopsis and Teratophyllum (excl. T. articulatum) of the present work as sections of Stenochlaena. Holttum (l.c. 1932) pointed out distinctions between Stenochlaena and the other two genera in spores, scales, anatomy and venation, and later made observations on Lomariopsis in the islands of the Indian Ocean (1939) and tropical America and Africa (1940).
Cytology
The only Malesian species investigated is L. lineata in cultivation at Kew, from root-tips (2n — 164, tetraploid with base 41; ). Plants from West Africa, also at Kew, gave various different results, and two species also showed unevenness in size of chromosomes.
Citation
Fee 1940: pp. 613-628. – In: Kew Bull.
Tard.-Bl. & C. Chr. 1939 – In: Fl. Gen. I.-C.: 427
Fee 1966 – In: Blumea: 218
Fee 1949 – In: Philip. J. Sc.: 400
Copel. 1947: Gen. Fil.: 117
Holttum 1932: pp. 264-277. – In: Gard. Bull. S. S.
v.A.v.R. 1908: Handb.: 718
Backer & Posth. 1939: Varenfl. Java: 150
1917: Handb.: All
J. Sm. 1875: Hist. Fil.: 139
Christ 1897: Farnkr. Erde: 39
Fee 1960: Fern Fl. Philip.: 267
Fee 1939: pp. 48-62. – In: Not. Syst.
Holttum 1954 – In: Rev. Fl. Mal.: 476