Resurrection fern (Pleopeltis
polypodioides)
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Description 1,2
Rhizome long creeping, slender, C. 2 mm in diameter; rhizome scales dark brown, lanceolate, entire,
appressed, c. 3mm long, with a dark area at the base. Fronds spaced apart. Stipe up to 13 cm long;
scales on stipe ovate, dark brown with pale margins, appressed. Lamina up to 21 × 6.5 cm, oblongdeltate in outline, pinate to pinnatifid to near the midrib; lobes linear to narrowly oblong, entire, base
broadly adnate, apex rounded. Upper surface glabrous, lower surface set with round to broadly
lanceolate, entire, peltate scales, c. 0.5 mm, grey to pale creamy brown with a dark centre. Veins
obscure, anastomising or free with terminal hydathodes. Sori round to oval, up to 12 per lobe, up to 1.5
mm in diameter, submarginal but protuding beyond the margin at maturity, exindusiate, without
paraphyses.
Worldwide distribution 1,2
Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zimbabwe.
Description 3,4
Varieties 6 (1 in the flora): North America, Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America, Africa.
Synonym 3,4
Acrostichum polypodioides Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1068. 1753; Marginaria polypodioides (Linnaeus)
Tidestrom; Polypodium polypodioides (Linnaeus) Watt
Type information 5
Typ e col l ecti on for Polypodium bernoullii Baker in Hook. & Baker
Catal og N u mb er: US 832774
Col l ecti on : Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany
Veri fi cati on Degree: Verified from the card file of type specimens
Prep arati on : Pressed specimen
Col l ector(s): K. G. Bernoulli
Year Col l ected : 1873
Local i ty: Mazatenango., Guatemala, Central America
Habitat
Depth range based on 4 specimens in 1 taxon.
Environmental ranges
Depth range (m): 0 - 0
Note: this information has not been validated. Check this *note*. Your feedback is most welcome.
Functional adaptation 6
Cel l s su rvi ve extreme water l oss: resu rrecti on fern
The cells of resurrection ferns may survive extreme water loss thanks to dehydrin proteins.
Maintain physical integrity > Protect from abiotic factors > Loss of liquids
"[S]ome plants, like the aptly named 'resurrection fern' (Polypodium polypodioides), can survive
extreme measures of water loss, even as much as 95% of their water content. How do the cells in these
desiccation-tolerant plants remain viable?
"…Ronald Balsamo, Associate Professor of Biology at Villanova University and Bradley Layton, Associate
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics at Drexel University…found that not only is a
particular class of proteins, called dehydrins, more prevalent during dry conditions, but, for the first
time, they found that it was also prevalent near the cell walls. Dehydrins earned their name for their
ability to attract, sequester, and localize water. They behave this way because of their negative charge.
"The finding led the researchers to the conclusion that these water-surrounded dehydrins may actually
allow water to act as a lubricant between either the plant cell membrane and the plant cell wall or
even between individual cell wall layers." (ScienceDaily 2010)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
Barcode data: pleopeltis polypodioides 7
The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this
species.
National nature serve conservation status 8
United States
R ou n d ed N ati on al Statu s R an k : N5 - Secure
Taxonomy 8
Commen ts : Polypodium polypodiodes has been included in Pleopeltis p. (Kartesz, 1994).
References
1. Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T. and Ballings, P. (2002-2014). Pleopeltis polypodioides (L.) E.G.Andrews &
Windham
subsp. ecklonii (Kunze) J.P.Roux Flora of Zimbabwe website. Accessed 28 August 2014 at
http://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/species.php?species_id=101520
2. © Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten and Petra Ballings, some rights reserved
3. Flora of North America Vol. 2 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
4. © Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA, some rights
reserved
5. © Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany, some
rights reserved
6. © The Biomimicry Institute, some rights reserved
7. © Barcode of Life Data Systems, some rights reserved
8. © NatureServe, some rights reserved