Coniogramme procera Fee (1865: 22)

Wang, Caihong, Yang, Wenli, Zhao, Junwen, Zhang, Danke & Zhang, Gangmin, 2019, Two new records of the fern genus Coniogramme (Pteridaceae) from Vietnam, PhytoKeys 119, pp. 137-142 : 137

Coniogramme procera Fee (1865: 22) Figures 2 , 3

Type.

Nepal. April 1821. Wallich no 3 (K!).

Specimens examined.

Vietnam. Kon Tum Province: NW slopes of Ngoc Link mountain, 2380 m elev., 06 Mar 1995, L. Averyanov et al. VH 519 (HN); W slope of Ngoc Link mountain, 1950 m elev., 10 May 1995, L. Averyanov et al. VH 1290 (HN).

Taxonomic notes.

This species is large and up to 1.8 m tall, differing from other species in its far more dissect laminae, basal pinnae having more than 10 pairs of pinnules, pinnules with rounded-truncate or truncate (sometimes slightly cordate) base and coarsely serrated margin and sori extending only to 1/2-2/3 of veins. Fraser-Jenkins (2008) reported that the species has a characteristically strong odour when the leaves were crushed or broken, similar to that of Coniogramme fraxinea (D.Don) Diels.

Distribution and habitat.

Coniogramme procera was once recorded being distributed in Vietnam in Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae ( Shing 1990) and this was followed by Flora of China ( Zhang and Ranker 2013). After specimen examination, we found that there were no accounts of C. procera in K, BM, P, PE and other major herbaria and we wondered about the basis of this recognition. In addition, the species has never been recorded in the literature on flora of Vietnam ( Tardieu-Blot and Christensen 1941; Pham 1991; Phan 2010), including the recently updated checklist ( Phan 2010). C. procera is therefore confirmed to be distributed in central Vietnam for the first time. It is also distributed in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines and Thailand. The species usually grows by streams in woodlands at a high elevation, about 1400 to 3600 m.

Based on previous literature ( Tardieu-Blot and Christensen 1941; Pham 1991; Phan 2010), along with our specimen identification work at HNU, HN and K, six taxa of Coniogramme were recognised in Vietnam, namely C. fraxinea (D.Don) Diels, C. intermedia Hieron., C. macrophylla (Blume) Hieron., C. petelotii Tardieu, C. japonica (Thunberg) Diels and C. procera Fée. Their main differences in character were illustrated in the following key:

Figures

Figure 2. Coniogramme procera Fee. A One of the voucher specimens B Portion of a pinnule, showing a truncate base C Morphology and habitat.

Figure 3. Distribution of C. japonica (dots) and C. procera (star) in Vietnam.