Didymochlaena truncatula (Sw.) J.Sm., J. Bot.

Kessler, Michael & Smith, Alan R., 2018, Prodromus of a fern flora for Bolivia. XXXIV. Didymochlaenaceae, Phytotaxa 334 (3), pp. 295-296 : 295-296

Didymochlaena truncatula (Sw.) J.Sm., J. Bot. (Hooker) 4: 196. 1842 [1841].

Range: —Greater Antilles; southern Mexico to Bolivia (CO, LP), Paraguay, and northern Argentina; tropical Africa and Asia.

Ecology: —Common; terrestrial in humid forests; to 1550 m. Leaf development and mortality are influenced by rainfall and drought, respectively ( de Paiva Farias et al. 2015).

Notes:— Throughout the pantropical range of the species, there is considerable morphological variability in Didymochlaena , including pinnule shape and size, and scale density, distribution, and coloration. Zhang & Zhang (2015) sequenced four specimens of Didymochlaena and found little genetic variation, but unpublished sequences of other genetic markers obtained from plants from Ecuador, Uganda, and New Guinea show considerable divergence (S. Noben et al. unpubl. data). It is possible that a thorough taxonomic revision of the genus would reveal that several species are involved, even though we consider it unlikely that more than one occurs in Bolivia.