Angiopteris

Angiopteris is a genus of huge evergreen ferns from the family Marattiaceae, found throughout the paleotropics from Madagascar to the South Pacific islands.

Angiopteris
Angiopteris lygodiifolia in Longtan District, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Division:	Polypodiophyta
Class:	Polypodiopsida
Order:	Marattiales
Family:	Marattiaceae
Genus:	Angiopteris Hoffm.
Type species
Angiopteris evecta (Forster) Hoffmann
Species
See text
Synonyms[1]
Archangiopteris Christ & Giesenh. Clementea Cav. Macroglossum Copel. Protangiopteris Hayata Protomarattia Hayata Psilodochea C.Presl

They feature a large, erect, woody rhizome with a wide base supported by thick roots. The fronds are deltoid, pinnate, 5–8 metres (16–26 ft) long, with spreading leaflets.^[2] At the base of the fronds is a pair of thick, leathery stipules — in the case of A. canaliculata, measuring up to 15 cm (5.9 in) long and wide.^[3] Species of smaller stature with elongate synangia and creeping rhizomes are sometimes segregated into the genus Archangiopteris, and a once-pinnate monotypic segregate genus has been called Macroglossum, but molecular data supports inclusion of these taxa within a broad concept of Angiopteris.^[4]

Angiopteris is unique among ferns in having explosively dispersed spores, thought to be caused by the cavitation of an airspace between spore layers.^[5] The basal chromosome number for this genus is 2n=80. The type species is Angiopteris evecta.^[4]

Angiopteris evecta has been introduced and naturalized in Hawaii,^[6] Jamaica, and parts of Central America, where it has become an invasive weed in lower elevation drainages.^{[citation needed]}

Taxonomy

The Smith et al. classification of 2006, based on molecular phylogeny, placed Angiopteris in Marattiaceae.^[7] Subsequent classifications have maintained this placement.^[8][9][10]

Species

Angiopteris taxonomy is poorly understood, with nearly 200 poorly defined species having been named,^[4] only a small handful of which are recognized in modern floras as of October 2022^[update].^[11]

Phylogeny of Angiopteris^[12][13]

A. angustifolia C.Presl A. subcuspidata Rosenst. A. smithii Racib. A. rapensis E.D.Br. A. tamdaoensis (Hayata) J.Y.Xiang & T.Wang A. tonkinensis (Hayata) J.M.Camus A. itoi (W.C.Shieh) J.M.Camus A. bipinnata (Ching) J.M.Camus A. chingii J.M.Camus A. marchionica E.D.Br. A. evecta (G.Forst.) Hoffm. (Giant king fern) A. pruinosa Kunze A. dianyuecola Z.R.He & W.M.Chu A. yunnanensis Hieron. A. fokiensis Hieron. A. hokouensis Ching A. lygodiifolia Rosenst. (Turnip fern, or Ryubentai) A. madagascariensis de Vriese A. annamensis C.Chr. & Tardieu A. somae (Hayata) Makino & Nemoto A. caudatiformis Hieron. A. cochinchinensis de Vriese A. wangii Ching A. cartilagidens Christ A. helferiana C.Presl

Unassigned species:

• †Angiopteris angustifoliopsis Kuzitchkina
• Angiopteris brooksii Copel.
• Angiopteris cadierei (C.Chr. & Tardieu) Govaerts & Christenh.
• Angiopteris chongsengiana Senterre & I.Fabre
• Angiopteris confertinervia Ching ex C.Chr. & Tardieu
• Angiopteris crassipes Wall.
• Angiopteris danaeoides Z.R.He & Christenh.
• Angiopteris elliptica Alderw.
• Angiopteris ferox Copel.
• Angiopteris holttumii C.Chr.
• †Angiopteris iberica Delle & Doludenko
• Angiopteris javanica C.Presl
• Angiopteris latipinna (Ching) Z.R.He, W.M.Chu & Christenh.
• Angiopteris microura Copel.
• Angiopteris oblanceolata Ching & Chu H.Wang
• Angiopteris opaca Copel.
• †Angiopteris parvispinellatus (Maljavkina) Faddeeva
• Angiopteris paucinervis W.M.Chu & Z.R.He
• Angiopteris remota Ching & Chu H.Wang
• †Angiopteris richthofenii von Schenk
• Angiopteris sparsisora Ching
• Angiopteris subrotundata (Ching) Z.R.He & Christenh.
• †Angiopteris taeniopteroides Yang
• Angiopteris sugongii Gui L.Zhang, J.Y.Xiang & Ting Wang
• Angiopteris undulatostriata Hieron.
• Angiopteris versteegii Alderw.
• Angiopteris winkleri Rosenst.