Pteris similis Kuhn.

Abotsi, Komla Elikplim, Radji, Aboudou R., Rouhan, Germinal, Dubuisson, Jean-Yves & Kokou, Kouami, 2015, The Pteridaceae family diversity in Togo, Biodiversity Data Journal 3, pp. 5078-5078 : 5078

Pteris similis Kuhn.

Pteris congoensis Christ., P. spinulifera sensu Tardieu.

Materials

Type status: Other material. Occurrence: catalogNumber: 30065 ; recordNumber: 162; recordedBy: ABOTSI, SODJINOU & MINGOU; Taxon: nameAccordingToID: The Plant List; scientificName: Pterissimilis Kuhn.; kingdom: Plantae; phylum: Monilophyta; class: Polypodiidae; order: Polypodiales; family: Pteridaceae; genus: Pteris; specificEpithet: similis; taxonRank: species; scientificNameAuthorship: Kuhn.; Location: continent: Africa; country: Togo; stateProvince: Plateaux; decimalLatitude: 8.19669463; decimalLongitude: 0.61947079; geodeticDatum: WGS 1984; Identification: identifiedBy: K. E. Abotsi; dateIdentified: /05/2013; Event: eventDate: 05-09-13; Record Level: institutionID: Herbarium togoense; collectionID: TOGO

Ecological interactions

Native status

Native

Distribution

Togo (Ecological Zone 4), Uganda, Tanzania, Principe Isl., Sao Tomé, Bioko Isl., Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Congo, D.R.Congo, Angola, Sudan

Notes

Pteris similis is a terrestrial fern, with an erect rhizome (up to 15 cm), with fronds in clumps, coverd by black scales, linear or linear-lanceolate. The fronds are solitary or tufted, reaching 1.8 to 4 (-6) m tall, often rooting at the apex (Fig. 16a). The petiole is straw colored, purplish or brownish at the base. It measures 30 to 50 cm long. It is channeled at the top, naked and muriculate. The lamina is pinnate, lanceolate. It measures 0.5 to 3.4 (-5.5) m long, sometimes more than 60 cm wide. Pinnae (10-30 pairs), pinnatifid, are oblong-lanceolate and measure 8-35 cm over 3.2-12.5 cm. The ultimate segments (12-28 pairs) are oblong-lanceolate, 1-8.5 cm long and 3-10 mm large. The terminal segment is 1.5 to 4cm long. Some terminals segments are pinnate, making some pinnae partially bipinnatifid. The lower pinnae are auriculate (Fig. 16b). The rachis is stramineous, muriculate or spiny. The costae and the costulae bear large spines on the underside. There is no buds at the base of the terminal pinnae. The lamina texture is membranous. The ribs form a lowered areola along the costa of pinnae, and 1 or 2 series of areolas along the midrib of the lobes. The sori occupy 3/4 to 7/8 of the lobes, down to the base of sinuses (Fig. 16c, d). The apex is sterile and toothed. Pteris similis grows generally on the banks of rivers, in rainforest areas.