The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Asplenium shuttleworthianum

Etymology

Asplenium: From the Greek a- 'without' and splene 'spleen', a northern hemisphere species, the black spleenwort (Asplenium adiantum-nigrum), was once believed to be a cure for diseases of the spleen.

Common Name(s)

Shuttleworths spleenwort

Current Conservation Status

2012 - At Risk - Naturally Uncommon

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - At Risk - Naturally Uncommon
2004 - Range Restricted

Qualifiers

2012 - RR, SO, Sp
2009 - SO, OL

Authority

Asplenium shuttleworthianum Kunze

Family

Aspleniaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

ASPSHU

Structural Class

Ferns

Synonyms

Asplenium flaccidum var. shuttleworthianum (Kunze) Hook.f.; Asplenium bulbiferum var. shuttleworthianum (Kunze) G.M.Thomson

Distribution

Indigenous. New Zealand: Kermadec Islands group (Meyers, Raoul and McCauley Islands). A tropical species widespread in the Pacific and reaching its world southern limit on the Kermadec Islands.

Habitat

Coastal to montane. In scrub, forest, or on shaded rock ledges. May be found either on the ground or as an epiphyte.

Features

Rhizome short, erect, bearing red-brown, linear attenuate scales. Stipes up to 150 mm long, green above, brown below, sparingly covered in small linear scales with long filiform apices. Laminae oblong to elliptic, 150-900 × 100-250 mm, yellow-green, coriaceous, 3- to 4-pinnate. Raches green, almost lacking scales, prominently grooved. Pinnae ovate to narrowly ovate, acuminate, stalked, up to 120 × 50 mm. Secondary pinnae linear to lanceolate, up to 15 × 2 mm, often pinnatifid. Ultimate segments linear, subacute, slightly expanded in the region of the sori. Sori near tips of ultimate segments, solitary, broad, submarginal, c.2 mm long.

Similar Taxa

Of the New Zealand asplenia this species is most likely to be confused with A. appendiculatum (Labill.) C.Presl which is not known from the Kermadec Islands but distinguished from its very glossy, bright to dark green more heavily divided fronds, its very large spores, and by the characteristic broadening of the ultimate pinnules in the region of the sori.

Flowering

Not applicable - spore producing

Flower Colours

No Flowers

Fruiting

Not applicable - spore producing

Propagation Technique

Easily grown. However, as it is cold sensitive it is best grown indoors. An excellent and very attractive pot plant. Like all other asplenia it is prone to scale and mealy bug infestations, which if let uncontrolled can be devastating.

Threats

A Naturally Uncommon, range-restricted endemic at its world southern limit. Although not that common on the Kermadec Islands, this is natural rather than induced and there are no known threats.

Chromosome No.

2n = c.288

Endemic Taxon

No

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

Life Cycle and Dispersal

Minute spores are wind dispersed (Thorsen et al., 2009).

This page last updated on 10 May 2014