Hymenophyllum capillare Desv., 1827

Ahamada H. Saïd, Sabine Hennequin, Germinal Rouhan & Jean-Yves Dubuisson, 2017, Disentangling the diversity and taxonomy of Hymenophyllaceae (Hymenophyllales, Polypodiidae) in the Comoros, European Journal of Taxonomy 313, pp. 1-53 : 22-23

Hymenophyllum capillare Desv.

Hymenophyllum capillare Desv., Mémoires de la Société linnéenne de Paris 6: 333 (1827). – Type: ‘Pend aux arbres dans les forests humides Ile Bourbon’, J.M.C. Richard 294 (holo-: P00065016!).

Hymenophyllum pendulum Bory in Bélanger, Voyage aux Indes Orientales. Botanique 2: 81, pl. 8, fig. 2 (1833). – Type: ‘Ile de Mascareigne [La Réunion]’, J.B.G.M. Bory de St.­Vincent s.n. (holo-: P00477830!).

Sphaerocionium pendulum (Bory) C.Presl, Eine botanische Abhandlung: 34 (1843).

Sphaerocionium capillare (Desv.) Copel., The Philippine Journal of Science 67 (1): 33 (1938).

Short description

Epiphytic; long-creeping filiform rhizomes, bearing sparsely distributed roots and long reddish brown trichomes, and widely separated pending fronds; fronds with usually wingless stipes and rachises (but rachises can be winged in dwarf forms, at least in its upper part), up to 40 cm long, linear to narrowly oblong, pinnate-pinnatifid, less often bipinnate, densely hairy with reddish brown, starred, non-pedunculated trichomes on stipes, rachises, veins and margins; numerous sori, paratactic, bilabiate without a developed base and with hairy margins.

Global distribution

Central Africa to the western Indian Ocean.

Distribution in Comoros

Anjouan, Grande Comore, Mayotte.

Additional specimens examined

COMOROS: s. loc., s.d., L.Humblot 288 (P01471899, P01471900, P01471901). ANJOUAN, s. loc., 1875, J.M.Hildebrandt1848 (P00139602, P00139603); s. loc., 1886, L.Humblot 1545 (P00139601, P00327782, P01471898); Sommet du Tringi, 12 Nov. 2009, M.Pignal et al. 3727 (P02439800). GRANDE COMORE, Massif du Karthala, 19 Nov. 2002, F.Rakotondrainibe et al. 6719 (P00311441), F.Rakotondrainibe et al. 6719bis (P00311442); Versant ouest du volcan Karthala, bois proche de Convalescence, 24 Oct. 2008, M.Pignal et al. 3386 (P02439787). MAYOTTE, s. loc., s.d., L.Humblot s.n. (P00139600).

Note

The sheet P00477830 is the only specimen upon which the validating diagnosis was based, and it was definitely designated by Bory as the type who mentioned on the sheet ‘N’ for new; according to Art. 9.3 ( McNeill et al. 2012) this specimen is thus established as the holotype of H. pendulum , rendering unnecessary the projected lectotypification by Pichi Sermolli (notula in Herb. P, September 1967) that was never published and thus is not effective.

In literature (e.g., Tardieu-Blot 1951, 2008), the range of fertile frond length for H. capillare varies from (6–)7 to 40 cm long. But in the wild, there are numerous specimens that display minute fertile fronds from 2.5 to 6 cm long, especially those well exposed while the largest and typical specimens usually occur in shadier places (pers. obs.). Such ‘dwarf forms’ are often lacking in collections and we decided here to integrate them in our Xper database as a distinct item.