''Sticherus cunninghamii'', also known as umbrella fern, is a New Zealand endemic

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 ...

. The species is named after English botanist and explorer Allan Cunningham; its

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

names include rarauheriki, waekura and tapuwae-kōtuku. Umbrella fern is characterised by its drooping fronds that resemble an umbrella, distinct from the fan-like fronds of its relative '' S. flabellatus''. The angle between the first branches on the frond is narrow, about 44°. Fronds are 15–30 cm long with an erect stipe between 20 and 50 cm high, but reaching 1 m at times.The last, longest leaf segment on the frond is up to 18 mm, and unlike in ''S. flabellatus'' is not serrated. Leaves are divided into two halves which fan out, with a dormant bud between them which sometimes grows into additional

pinnae Pinna may refer to: Biology * Pinna (anatomy), or auricle, the outer part of the ear * ''Pinna'' (bivalve), a genus of molluscs * Pinna (botany), a primary segment of a compound leaf People Surname * Christophe Pinna (born 1968), French marti ...

, especially in plants growing along the ground rather than up banks. The underside of the leaf segments is white or

glaucous ''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), ...

, and is covered with broad scales which are brown in the centre and fade to pale on the margins. Sori are found in one row each side of the midrib, have around five

sporangia A sporangium (from Late Latin, ; : sporangia) is an enclosure in which spores are formed. It can be composed of a unicellular organism, single cell or can be multicellular organism, multicellular. Virtually all plants, fungus, fungi, and many ot ...

, and spores measure 29–31 μm by 14–15 μm. MA I148404 TePapa Sticherus-cunninghamii full

This fern grows in patches from a long creeping rhizome, which is much-branched and is covered with dark brown scales. The fronds characteristically rise into two or three tiers of "umbrellas". ''S. cunninghami'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to New Zealand, and is common in the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

, particularly in the central volcanic area, but rarer in the eastern and southern parts of the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

and in

Stewart Island Stewart Island (, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura, formerly New Leinster) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a la ...

and the

Auckland Islands The Auckland Islands ( Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island ...

. It occurs from lowland to montane forest, usually along shaded stream banks and road cuttings where it can form the main ground cover. The fern is used in traditional

rongoā (or rongoā Māori) refers to the traditional medicinal practices developed among the Māori in New Zealand. Rongoā was one of the Māori cultural practices targeted by the Tohunga Suppression Act 1907, until lifted by the Maori Welfare Ac ...

herbal medicine; one specimen collected in 1888 for King Tāwhiao is annotated "the sap of this fern is a powerful narcotic".Umbrella fern, Sticherus cunninghamii (Hook.) Ching
Museum of New Zealand Plant Collection. Collected by Charles Jeffs, 1888
/ref> The plant is very difficult to transplant and cultivate.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7616159 Gleicheniales Ferns of New Zealand