The World Flora Online

LOPHOSORIA C. PreslTerrestres; rizoma grueso, rastrero a ascendente o erecto formando un tallo corto, con densos tricomas dorados, suaves y largos; hojas grandes, monomorfas; pecíolo grueso, sin espinas y con abundantes tricomas; lámina deltado-ovada, 3-pinnado-pinnatífida a 4-pinnada, glauca abaxialmente, ejes y nervios con tricomas dorados, coriácea a subcoriácea; nervios mayormente libres; soros redondeados, mediales, paráfisis abundan­tes, indusio ausente, esporas tetraédrico-globosas.Género con ca 3 especies. Una especie ampliamente distribuida en el neotrópico, L. quadripinnata; 1 especie en Nicaragua. Datos moleculares recientes (Wolf et al., 1999) señalan la afinidad de este género con Dicksonia. Puede ser separado de los helechos arbóreos dicksonioides por su rizoma grueso abundantemente tricomatoso, su lámina glauca abaxialmente y la ausencia de indusio.

P.G. Wolf, S.D. Sipes, M.R. White, M.L. Martines, K.M. Pryer, A.R. Smith y K. Veda. Phylogenetic relationship of the enigmatic fern families Hymenophyllopsidaceae and Lophosoriaceae: Evidence from rbcL nucleotide sequences. Pl. Syst. Evol. 219: 263–270. 1999.

Terrestrial; rhizome creeping to ascending or erect, trunk short, with hairs dense, long, golden; fronds large, monomorphic; stipe stout, hairy, brown to stramineous; blade deltate-ovate, tripinnate-pinnatifid, anadromous, coriaceous or subcoriaceous, glaucous beneath, axes and veins with golden hairs; veins free or casually areolate; sori round, medial, abaxial, exindusiate, with hairs; spores tetrahedral-globose, with equatorial flange. Caudex erect, short, densely hairy at apex. Fronds few, fasciculate, spreading or suberect, with stout hairy stipes (the hairs lustrous yellow-brown, softly felt-like, deciduous) as long as the blades. devoid of spines. Blades finely dissected, subdeltate; pinnae distant, stalked, inequilateral, deltateoblong, acuminate, the basal ones slightly reduced; ultimate segments numerous, separate, shortstalked to adnate, acute, deeply pinnatifid, with pinnate free veins. Sori usually basal on segments, the sporangia few, mixed with numerous hairlike paraphyses; sporangia short-pedicellate, the pedicel of about 6 rows of cells; annulus of 22-28 cells. Spores tetrahedral-globose, trilete, the faces unequal with a large rounded flange closer to the proximal than the distal pole, the proximal face coarsely tuberculate, the distal pitted, more or less coarsely rugose, the surface granular. Chromosomes: n = 65. Terrestrial; rhizomes creeping to ascending or erect, trunks short, with dense, long, golden hairs; fronds large, monomorphic; stipes stout, hairy, brown to stramineous, lacking spines; blades deltate-ovate, tripinnate-pinnatifid, anadromous, coriaceous or subcoriaceous, glaucous abaxially, axes and veins with golden hairs; veins free or casually areolate; sori round, medial, abaxial, exindusiate, with abundant paraphyses; spores with equatorial flange; x = 65. Caudex erect, short, densely hairy at apex. Fronds few, fasciculate, spreading or suberect, with stout hairy stipes (the hairs lustrous yellow-brown, softly felt-like, deciduous) as long as the blades. devoid of spines. Blades finely dissected, subdeltate; pinnae distant, stalked, inequilateral, deltateoblong, acuminate, the basal ones slightly reduced; ultimate segments numerous, separate, shortstalked to adnate, acute, deeply pinnatifid, with pinnate free veins. Sori usually basal on segments, the sporangia few, mixed with numerous hairlike paraphyses; sporangia short-pedicellate, the pedicel of about 6 rows of cells; annulus of 22-28 cells. Spores tetrahedral-globose, trilete, the faces unequal with a large rounded flange closer to the proximal than the distal pole, the proximal face coarsely tuberculate, the distal pitted, more or less coarsely rugose, the surface granular. Chromosomes: n = 65. Terrestrial; rhizomes creeping to ascending or erect, trunks short, with dense, long, golden hairs; fronds large, monomorphic; stipes stout, hairy, brown to stramineous, lacking spines; blades deltate-ovate, tripinnate-pinnatifid, anadromous, coriaceous or subcoriaceous, glaucous abaxially, axes and veins with golden hairs; veins free or casually areolate; sori round, medial, abaxial, exindusiate, with abundant paraphyses; spores with equatorial flange; x = 65.

Lophosoria is a genus of three species, one of which is widespread and common in high elevation wet forests. The genus resembles the dicksonioid tree ferns in stomata, hairs, stipe anatomy, and chromosome number (x =65). It is distinct by its stout, hairy rhizomes, large fronds, blades glaucous abaxially, and exindusiate abaxial sori. Molecular data (Wolf et al., 1999) have shown Lophosoria to be sister to Dicksonia.