STUDIES ON THE GENUS TECTARIA CAVANILLES (DRYOPTERIDACEAE -

PTERIDOPHYTA) OF WESTERN GHATS OF KARNATAKA

S. DOMINIC RAJKUMAR
SRI PARAMAKALYANI CENTRE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
MANONMANIAM SUNDARANAR UNIVERSITY
ALWARKURICHI – 627 412. TAMIL NADU
Email: dominicraj_in @yahoo.com, dominicraj_in @hotmail.com

Abstract

Tectaria coadunata (J.Sm.) Chr., T. paradoxa (Fee) sledge and T. wightii (Clarke)

Ching, have been collected from the Western Ghats ranges of the Kudremukh national

park of the Karnataka state. The present collection of T. paradoxa and T. wightii is the

first report of these two species from Karnataka.

Key Words

Tectaria, Western Ghats, Karnataka.

Introduction

The genus Tectaria Cavanilles is a pantropical genus belonging to the

family Dryopteridaceae. In India about 23 species are known to occur (Chandra 2000) of

which about 9 species are found to be in South India (Dixit 1984) where as Beddome

(1865) had collected only about 5 species from South India. Manickam and Irudayaraj

(1992) have collected about 3 species from Tamil Nadu and southern part of Kerala.

Nayar and Geevarghese (1993) have collected about 5 species from the Malabar range.

From the Karnataka state Rajagopal and Bhat (1998) have collected about 2 species

(Tectaria coadunata (J.Sm.) Chr. and T. polymorpha (Wall. ex Hook.) Copel.). Sledge

(1982) has collected about ten species from Sri Lanka. During the recent floristic
exploration of Western Ghats ranges of Kudremukh National Park of Karnataka state,

about three species Tectaria paradoxa (Fig. 1), T. wightii (Fig. 2) and T. coadunata (Fig.

3) have been collected. The present collection of T. paradoxa and T. wightii is the first

report of these two species from the Karnataka state. In the present study the three species

are illustrated and described in detail.

Description

1. Tectaria paradoxa (Fee) sledge, Kew Bull. 27: 413 (1972) excl. Syn. Aspidium

fuscipes & derivaties, Bot. J Linn. Soc. 84:18 (1982); Holtt. Kew Bull. 43 (3): 480

(1988); Manickam & Iradayaraj, Pterid. Fl. West. Ghats, 256 (1992); Nayar &

Geevarghese, Fern Fl. Malabar 224 (1993).

Aspidium paradoxum Fee, Gen, Fil. 293 (1852)

Lastrea paradoxa (Fee) Moore, Index Fil. 99 (1858)

Lastrea membranifolia sensu Bedd., FSI t. 102 (1863) non Lastrea dissecta (G. Forst.)

Carr. (1873).

Ctenitis dissecta (Forst. f.) H. Ito in Chandra & Kaur, Nomen. Guide 12 (1987)

Ctenitis dissecta (Forst. f.) Ching, Bull. Fan. Mem. Inst. Biol. (Bot.) 8: 321 (1938); Dixit,

census 139 (1984).

Rhizome erect, scaly at the apex; scales lanceolate; Stipes up to 50 cm long, dark

brown, with scales all over; Lamina lanceolate, 70 x 25cm, bipinnatifid at the base,

simply pinnatifid above; Pinnae 11 pairs, petiolate, subopposite, basal most pair with 4 to

6 pairs of secondary pinnae on either side; Largest simple pinnae 26 x 7cm, oblong-

lanceolate margin lobed, cuneate; Costa slightly raised and rounded below; veins upto 12

pairs forked once, free distinct below, indistinct above; Sori submarginal on the veins up
to 15 pairs, reniform; Indusia brownish, firm, glabrous; Spores reniform 40 x 32 µm,

pale brown.

2. Tectaria wightii (Clarke) Ching, Sinensia 2: 28 t. 10 (1931); Nayar & Kaur, Comp.

Bedd., Handb. 51 (1974); Dixit, census 145 (1984); Manickam & Irudayaraj, Pterid. Fl.

West. Ghats 258 (1992); Fras.- Jenk., New Sp. Syndr. Indian Pterid. 243 (1997).

Nephrodium wightii Clarke, Trans, Linn. Soc. London II, Bot. 1: 538 (1880)

Aspidium polymorphum var. macrocarpum Bedd., FSI t. 117 (1865).

Aspidium polymorphum sensu Bedd. Handb. 218 (1883) pro parte. & suppl. 45 (1892).

Tectaria polymorpha (Wall. ex Hook) Copel. in Nayar & Kaur, Comp. Bedd., Handb. 51

(1974) pro parte

Tectaria polymorpha var. macrocarpa (Bedd.) Chandra & Kaur, Indian Fern J. 1:86

(1984) & Nomen. Guide 14 (1987).

Tectaria macrocarpa (Bedd.) Nayar & Geevarghese, Bull. Bot. Surv. India 280: 134

(1986) & Fern Fl. Malabar 222 (1993).

Rhizome creeping, densely scaly at the apex; Scales dark brown; Stipes

clustered, 48 x 0.6cm, brownish, scales all over; Lamina ovate, 60 x 28 cm, simply

pinnate, margin entire, costa slighty raised above; Pinnae greenish when fresh, reddish

brown when dry, glabrous; Sori numerous, in two rows on the netted veins, exindusiate,

spores reniform, 32 µm in diameter, brownish..

3. Tectaria coadunata (J.Sm.) Chr., Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 26:331 (1931); Ching,

Sinensia 2: 18 (1931) pro parte; in Hara, Fl. East. Himal. 1: 481 (1966); 2: 213 (1971);

Sledge, Kew Bull. 27: 418 (1972) pro parte & Bot. J. Linn. Soc. 84: 18 (1982); Nayar &

Kaur, Comp. Bedd., Handb. 52 (1974); in ohashi, Fl. East. Himal. 3: 191 (1975); Dixit,
Census 142 (1984); Holtt., Gard. Bull. Singapore 34: 137 (1981) & Kew Bull. 43 (3); 487

(1988); Fras.- Jenk., Pakistan Syst. 5:96 (1991); Manickam & Irudayaraj, Pterid. Fl.

West. Ghats 260 (1992); Nayar & Geevarghese, Fern Fl. Malabar 219 (1993); Vasudeva

& Bir, Indian Fern J. 10:123 (1993); Irudayaraj & Bir, Indian Fern J. 14: 114 (1997);

Rajagopal & Bhat. Indian Fern J. 15: 21 (1998).

Sagenia coadunata, J. sm. in Hook., J. Bot. London 4 : 184 (1841)

Sagenia macrodonta Fee, Gen. Fil. 313 t 24 (1852).

Tectaria macrodonta (Fee) C. chr., Index Fil. Suppl. III: 181 (1934); Dixit, Census 143

(1984).

Nephrodium cicutarium sensu Hook & Bak., Syn. Fil 299 (1867) pro parte; Clarke,

Trans. Linn. Soc. London II Bot. 1: 539 (1880); Hope, J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 14 :

747 (1903) pro parte.

Rhizome creeping; Scales all over; scales ovate – lanceolate, pale brownish,

margin ciliated; Stipes scattered, 52 x 0.8 cm, rounded abaxially, grooved adaxially,

glabrous; Lamina greenish, broadly ovate, 35 x 42cm, apex acute, base cordate,

bipinnate; Veins slightly distinct below and above, copiously anastomosing to form a

series of elongated areoles near the costa and costules; Sori in two rows along the

costules of secondary pinnae, indusiate; Indusia dark brown, glabrous; Spores reniform,

40 x 23 cm, brownish.
Specimens Examined

Tectaria paradoxa: Kadamba Kundi falls, 26.03.2002, 275m, Rajkumar 1785, 1788

Tectaria wightii: Singsar stream, 20.02.2002, 819m, Rajkumar 1686, 1689, 1693

Tectaria coadunata: Korkan halla, 23.02.2002, 652m, Rajkumar 1549,1551. Kadamba

Kundi falls, 26.03.2002, 275m, Rajkumar 1784. Banjar mala estate, 29.03.2002, 395m,

Rajkumar 1833.

All specimens are deposited at the National History Museum, SPK Centre for

Environmental Sciences, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Alwarkurichi, Tamil

Nadu, India.

Ecology and distribution

Tectaria paradoxa

Its a rare terrestrial plant found along the fully exposed and fully shaded waysides.

India: Andrapradesh (Chandra 2000) Tamil Nadu (Manickam & Irudayaraj 1992),

Malabar (Nayar & Geevarghese 1993). Burma, Malaya Island (Chandra 2000) Sri Lanka

(Sledge 1982)

Tectaria wightii

Its also a rare terrestrial plant found on the fully shaded stream banks.

India: Arunachal pradesh, Sikkim, Assam (Chandra 2000), Tamil Nadu (Manickam &

Irudayaraj 1992), Kerala (Nayar & Geevarghese 1993). Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Sri

Lanka (Chandra 2000. sledge 1982).

Tectaria coadunata

Its also a territorial plant found occasionally along the partially shaded way sides.

India : Jammu, West Bengal, Assam, Mehalaya, Bihar, Madyapradesh (Chandra 2000),

Karnataka (Rajagopal and Bhat 1998), Tamil Nadu (Manickam & Irudayaraj 1988,

1992), Kerala (Nayar and Geevarghese 1993). America, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil.

China, Cuba, Malaysia, Mexico, Nepal, Peru, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tropical

Africa, Vietnam (Chandra 2000, Sledge 1981)

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance from the Council of

Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi through the Pool scientist scheme (CSIR

No: B- 10346) and the Department of Science & Technology, New Delhi through the

Young Scientist Award Scheme.

References

1. Beddome, R.H. 1865. The Ferns of British India. Gantz Brothers, Madras. 1: 1-

120

2. Chandra, S. 2000. The ferns of India (Enumeration, Synonyms & Distribution).

International Book Distributors, Dehradun.

3. Dixit, R.D. 1984. A census of the Indian Pteridophytes. Bot. Surv. Deptt. of

environment, Howrah.

4. Manickam, V.S. and V. lrudayaraj, 1988. Cytology of the ferns of the Western

Ghats - south India. Today and Tomorrow printers and publishers, New Delhi.

5. Manickam, V. S. and Irudayaraj. V. 1992. Pteridophytic flora of the Western

Ghats – South India. B.I. publications, New Delhi.

6. Nayar, B.K. and K.K. Geevarghese. 1993. Fern flora of Malabar. Indus publishing

company, New Delhi.

7. Rajagopal, P.K. and Bhat, K.G. 1998. Pteridophytic flora of Karnataka state,

India. Indian Fern J. 15: 1- 28.

8. Sledge W.A. 1982. Annotated checklist of the Pteridophyta of Ceylon. Bot. J.

Linn. Soc. 84: 1-30.

 Legends

Fig. 1. a. Frond of T. paradoxa (Fee) sledge

b. Portion of pinnules enlarged

Fig. 2. a. Frond of T. wightii (Clarke) Ching

b. Portion of fertile pinna enlarged showing the sori

Fig. 3. a. Frond of Tectaria coadunata (J.Sm.) Chr

b. Portion of pinnules enlarged

c. Sori enlarged