SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
Introductory
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION :
Esser, Lora L. 1994. Asplenium adiantum-nigrum. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online].
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station,
Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/fern/aspadi/all.html [].
ABBREVIATION :
ASPADI
SYNONYMS :
Asplenium andrewsii
NRCS PLANT CODE :
ASAD
COMMON NAMES :
black spleenwort fern
TAXONOMY :
The currently accepted scientific name of black spleenwort fern is
Asplenium adiantum-nigrum L. [5,12,15]. It is a member of the
Aspleniaceae family. Asplenium adiantum-nigrum is derived from a cross
between A. onopteris L. and A. cuneifolium Viv. [1,11,12]. Black
spleenwort fern shows a wide range of morphological variation,
completely overlapping with the typical forms of both parents [12].
LIFE FORM :
Fern
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS :
No special status
OTHER STATUS :
NO-ENTRY
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION :
Black spleenwort fern is an introduced species in the continental United
States and only occurs in Arizona, Utah, and Colorado [5,7,15]. It is
native to Hawaii, Eurasia, and Africa [6,12,15].
ECOSYSTEMS :
FRES21 Ponderosa pine
FRES34 Chaparral - mountain shrub
STATES :
AZ CO HI UT
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS :
11 Southern Rocky Mountains
12 Colorado Plateau
KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
SAF COVER TYPES :
237 Interior ponderosa pine
SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES :
NO-ENTRY
HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES :
Black spleenwort fern occurs in mountain brush and ponderosa pine (Pinus
ponderosa) communities in southern Utah [15]. It occurs in mountainous
or rocky areas throughout the state of Colorado [5]. In Hawaii
Volcanoes National Park, black spleenwort fern occurs in Ohia lehua
(Metrosideros polymorpha) communities [6].
MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE :
NO-ENTRY
PALATABILITY :
NO-ENTRY
NUTRITIONAL VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
COVER VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES :
NO-ENTRY
OTHER USES AND VALUES :
NO-ENTRY
OTHER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS :
Black spleenwort fern is perennial, with fronds tufted or few together,
0.33 to 0.99 feet (0.1-0.3 m) long. Blades are ovate-deltoid to
elongate deltoid, 1.2 to 6 inches (3-15 cm) long and 1.0 to 3.0 inches
(2.5-7.6 cm) wide, and bipinnate or ternate. The sori are short, but
almost connected in a continuous chain on the pinnae. Black spleenwort
fern has short rhizomes with numerous roots [5,15].
RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM :
Hemicryptophyte
Geophyte
REGENERATION PROCESSES :
Black spleenwort fern reproduces from spores and short rhizomes [5,15].
SITE CHARACTERISTICS :
Black spleenwort fern occurs in rocky or mountainous areas [5,6,7,15].
In Utah, it is found on shaded, mesic cliffs of Navajo sandstone [15].
Black spleenwort fern occurs at elevations of 5,775 feet (1,750 m) in
Utah, 5,500 feet (1,650 m) in Colorado, and 7,500 feet (2,250 m) in
Arizona [5,7,15].
SUCCESSIONAL STATUS :
NO-ENTRY
SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT :
NO-ENTRY
FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS :
Black spleenwort fern grows on cliffs and ledges. These areas may
protect it from most fires.
FIRE REGIMES:
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page
under "Find Fire Regimes".
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY :
Rhizomatous herb, rhizome in soil
FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT :
Black spleenwort fern is probably top-killed by fire.
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT :
NO-ENTRY
PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE :
Black spleenwort fern may sprout from rhizomes after fire.
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE :
NO-ENTRY
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
REFERENCES
SPECIES: Asplenium adiantum-nigrum
REFERENCES :
1. Bennert, H. Wilfried; Jager, Wolfgang; Theren, Gregor. 1982. Spore
characters of taxa within the Asplenium adiantum-nigrum complex and
their systematical significance. Berichte Der Deutschen Botanischen
Gesellschaft. 95(2): 297-312. [23411]
2. Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals,
reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's
associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO:
U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p.
[434]
3. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]
4. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others].
1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range
ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]
5. Harrington, H. D. 1964. Manual of the plants of Colorado. 2d ed.
Chicago: The Swallow Press Inc. 666 p. [6851]
6. Hughes, Flint; Vitousek, Peter M.; Tunison, Timothy. 1991. Alien grass
invasion and fire in the seasonal submontane zone of Hawai'i. Ecology.
72(2): 743-746. [15962]
7. Kearney, Thomas H.; Peebles, Robert H.; Howell, John Thomas; McClintock,
Elizabeth. 1960. Arizona flora. 2d ed. Berkeley, CA: University of
California Press. 1085 p. [6563]
8. Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation
of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York:
American Geographical Society. 77 p. [1384]
9. Raunkiaer, C. 1934. The life forms of plants and statistical plant
geography. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 632 p. [2843]
10. Richardson, P. Mick; Lorenz-Liburnau, Eugenia. 1982. C-glycosylxanthones
in the Asplenium adiantum-nigrum complex. American Fern Journal. 72(4):
103-106. [23336]
11. Richardson, P. M. 1983. Phenolic chemistry distinguishes Asplenium
adiantum-nigrum L. from A. cuneifolium VIV. Watsonia. 14(4): 414-415.
[23335]
12. Sleep, Anne. 1980. On the reported occurrence of Asplenium cuneifolium
and A. adiantum-nigrum in the British Isles. Fern Gazette. 12(2):
103-107. [23334]
13. Stickney, Peter F. 1989. Seral origin of species originating in northern
Rocky Mountain forests. Unpublished draft on file at: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station, Fire
Sciences Laboratory, Missoula, MT; RWU 4403 files. 7 p. [20090]
14. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 1994. Plants
of the U.S.--alphabetical listing. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 954 p. [23104]
15. Welsh, Stanley L.; Atwood, N. Duane; Goodrich, Sherel; Higgins, Larry
C., eds. 1987. A Utah flora. Great Basin Naturalist Memoir No. 9. Provo,
UT: Brigham Young University. 894 p. [2944]
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