''Athyrium'' (lady-fern) is a genus of about 180 species of terrestrial
fern
The ferns (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta) are a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissue ...
s, with a
cosmopolitan distribution
In biogeography, a cosmopolitan distribution is the range of a taxon that extends across most or all of the surface of the Earth, in appropriate habitats; most cosmopolitan species are known to be highly adaptable to a range of climatic and en ...
. It is placed in the family
Athyriaceae
The Athyriaceae (ladyferns and allies) are a family of terrestrial ferns in the order Polypodiales. In the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I), the family is placed in the suborder Aspleniineae, and includes two gene ...
, in the order
Polypodiales
The Order (biology), order Polypodiales encompasses the major lineages of polypod ferns, which comprise more than 80% of today's fern species. They are found in many parts of the world including Tropics, tropical, semitropical and Temperate clima ...
.
[
Its genus name is from Greek '' a-'' ('without') and Latinized Greek '']thyreos
A ''thyreos'' or ''thureos'' () was a large oval shield which was commonly used in Hellenistic armies from the 3rd century BC onwards. It was adopted from the Galatians, probably first by the Illyrians, then by the Thracians before becoming commo ...
'' ('shield'), describing its inconspicuous indusium
A sorus (: sori) is a cluster of sporangia (structures producing and containing spores) in ferns and fungi. A coenosorus (: coenosori) is a compound sorus composed of multiple, fused sori.
Etymology
This Neo-Latin word is from Ancient Greek Ï ...
(sorus' covering).Athyrium filix-femina
''Athyrium filix-femina'', the lady fern or common lady-fern, is a large, feathery species of fern native to temperate Asia, Europe, North Africa, Canada and the US. It is often abundant (one of the more common ferns) in damp, shady woodland envi ...
''.[Entry "lady fern", ''New Oxford American Dictionary 3rd edition'' (2010) by Oxford University Press, Inc.]
''Athyrium'' species are used as food plants by the larva
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...
species including the small angle shades
The small angle shades (''Euplexia lucipara'') is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is distributed throughout the Palearctic. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''.
As the common name ...
and '' Sthenopis auratus''.
Species
There are about 180, including:
References
External links
Flora of ChinaFlora EuropaeaFlora of North America
{{Authority control
Fern genera