Stats

Lifespan

Perennial

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Temperate forest

Range

North America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Spores

Defense

Camouflage

Status

Common

About

This small fern grows on the branches of trees throughout North and Central America. It can lose ninety-seven percent of its water content and appear dead before reviving in minutes.

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.

Learn more

• View on iNaturalist →

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Polypodiopsida

Order

Polypodiales

Family

Polypodiaceae

Genus

Pleopeltis

Species

Pleopeltis michauxiana