Ophioglossum lusitanicum
Encyclopedia
Ophioglossum lusitanicum (Least Adder's Tongue) is a small fern of the family Ophioglossaceae. It is categorised as Vulnerable by the IUCN (2001).
This species has a chromosome number of 2n= 250-260
of Europe
(Great Britain
, Spain
and Portugal
), the Atlantic Islands (Cape Verde
and the Canary Islands
), the Middle East
(Israel
and Iran
), South America (Peru
and Argentina
) , and Australasia
(Australia
and New Zealand
).
The distribution in Britain is restricted to one small area of coastal heath on St Agnes, Isles of Scilly
. It grows in short turf on Wingletang Downs where some colonies are suffering from an increase of competitive grasses, gorse (Ulex europaeus) and bramble (Rubus fruticosus). O. lusitanicum is listed on Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 and is within a Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI).
In Australasia and South America this species is represented by subspecies
coriaceum (A. Cunn.) R.T. Clausen
Subspecies coriaceum has a much broader ecological range in southern Australia where habitats it frequents include meadows, woods and heathland.
Description
This small winter annual fern consists of a simple sterile blade attached to a spike-like fertile blade with between three and eight sunken sporangia on either side. The whole plant rarely exceeds a height of 2 cm.This species has a chromosome number of 2n= 250-260
Distribution
O. lusitanicum is native to the western seaboardSeaboard
Seaboard is a synonym for coast.Seaboard can also refer to:* Seaboard, North Carolina* Seaboard Corporation, an international agribusiness company...
of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
), the Atlantic Islands (Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
and the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
), the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
(Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
), South America (Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
) , and Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
(Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
).
The distribution in Britain is restricted to one small area of coastal heath on St Agnes, Isles of Scilly
Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. The islands have had a unitary authority council since 1890, and are separate from the Cornwall unitary authority, but some services are combined with Cornwall and the islands are still part...
. It grows in short turf on Wingletang Downs where some colonies are suffering from an increase of competitive grasses, gorse (Ulex europaeus) and bramble (Rubus fruticosus). O. lusitanicum is listed on Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 and is within a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI).
In Australasia and South America this species is represented by subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
coriaceum (A. Cunn.) R.T. Clausen
Ecology
As this species is a winter annual it requires a warm winter environment. In its British populations it favours thin, unshaded, peaty soils in south facing localities.Subspecies coriaceum has a much broader ecological range in southern Australia where habitats it frequents include meadows, woods and heathland.
External links
- Map showing distribution of Ophioglossum lusitanicum in the British Isles at: BSBI Maps http://www.bsbimaps.org.uk/atlas/map_page.php?spid=1380.0&sppname=Ophioglossum%20lusitanicum&commname=Least%20Adder^s-tongue
- Ophioglossum lusitanicum at: The Ferns (Filicopsida) of the British Isles http://delta-intkey.com/britfe/www/ophilusi.htm
- Detailed photos of Ophioglossum lusitanicum at: Future is written in green http://mundani-garden.blogspot.com/2011/01/ophioglossum-lusitanicum-small-big.html
- Wingletang Downs SSSI citation http://www.sssi.naturalengland.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1002130.pdf