Stats

Lifespan

Perennial

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Temperate forest

Range

North America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Spores

Defense

Toxins

Status

Common

About

This small evergreen fern grows directly out of rocky crevices and tree roots. Its underside is covered in brown spore clusters that launch into the air when dry.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Polypodiopsida

Order

Polypodiales

Family

Polypodiaceae

Genus

Polypodium

Species

Polypodium virginianum