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Tongue fern (Pyrrosia adnascens)

Dlium Tongue fern (Pyrrosia adnascens)

Tongue fern (Pyrrosia adnascens) is a plant species in the Polypodiaceae, a long creeping rhizome, up to 1 mm thick, in cross-section usually with a single central sclerenchyma strand, the distance between phyllopodia is 1-2 cm and lateral shoots alternate with phyllopodia.

P. adnascens has peltate scales, 3-5x1 mm, all over the base to the ciliate. Light brown tips, often with distinct hyaline and ciliate margins. Dimorphic midrib. The sterile frond has a stalk of 1-1.5 cm. Lamina 1-6x1-2 cm, cuneate base and rounded tip.



The fertile midrib gradually narrows at the base to the stem for a length of 5 cm. Lamina 8-25-0.45-0.8 cm, blunt tip to acute. Hydathodes appear rarely, few and are not clear. Monomorphic indumen but rarely, whitish to brown in color. Long hair 0.2-1.2 mm. Sori sinks with the central bundle of paraphyses.

Tongue fern grows on the trunks of living trees, dead trees and rocks at an altitude of 0-1300 m. Generally grows in humid areas and can withstand drought for up to 6 months. The whole plant is used in traditional Chinese medicine.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Polypodiopsida
Subclass: Polypodiidae
Order: Polypodiales
Suborder: Polypodiineae
Family: Polypodiaceae
Subfamily: Platycerioideae
Genus: Pyrrosia Mirb. in J.B.A.M.de Lamarck & C.F.B.de Mirbel, Hist. Nat. Vég. Cl. Fam. 3: 471 (1802)
Species: Pyrrosia adnascens (Sw.) Ching in Bull. Chin. Bot. Soc. 1: 45 (1935)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Cyclophorus adnascens (Sw.) Desv. in Ges. Naturf. Freunde Berlin Mag. Neuesten Entdeck. Gesammten Naturk. 5: 300 (1811)
Niphobolus adnascens (Sw.) Kaulf. in Enum. Filic.: 124 (1824)
Polypodium adnascens Sw. in Syn. Fil. (Kiliae): 25, 222 (1806)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Cyclophorus pertusa Link in Fil. Spec.: 118 (1841)
Cyclophorus pustulosus Christ in Notul. Syst. (Paris) 1: 187 (1910)
Niphobolus pertusus (Roxb. ex Hook.) Spreng. in Syst. Veg., ed. 16. 4(1): 44 (1827)
Polypodium pertusum Roxb. ex Hook. in Exot. Fl. 3: t. 162 (1825)
Pyrrosia adnascens f. calcicola K.H.Shing in J. Jap. Bot. 72: 28 (1997)

PUBLICATIONS

Aung, Y.L., Aung, M.H., Tan, Y. & Jin, X. (2025). An updated checklist of vascular plants of Myanmar. PhytoKeys 261: 135-364.

Chang, C.-S., Kim, H. & Chang, K.S. (2021). Checklist of Far East Asian Vascular Flora 1: 1-626. EABCN, Seoul.

Ebihara, A. (2017). The standard of ferns and lycophytes in Japan. Nihonsan shida shokubutsu hyojun zukan 2: 1-507. Gakken Plus, Tokyo.

Fraser-Jenkins, C.R. & Kandel, D.R. (2020). Ferns and Fern-Allies of Nepal 3: 1-191. Government of Nepal, Ministry of Forests and Environment, Department of Plant Resources.

Fraser-Jenkins, C.R. & al. (2021). An Annotated Checklist of Indian Pteridophytes 3: 1-450. Dehra Dun : BSMPS.

Newman, M., Ketphanh, S., Svengsuksa, B., Thomas, P., Sengdala, K., Lamxay, V. & Armstrong, K. (2007). A checklist of the vascular plants of Lao PDR: 1-394. Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh.

Plunkett, G.M., Ranker, T.A., Sam, C. & Balick, M.J. (2022). Towards a checklist of the vascular flora of Vanuatu. Candollea 77: 105-118.

Roskov Y. & al. (eds.) (2018). World Ferns: Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life Naturalis, Leiden, the Netherlands.

Sarder, N.U. & Hassan, M.A. (eds.) (2018). Vascular flora of Chittagong and the Chittagong Hill Tracts 1: 1-897. Bangladesh National Herbarium, Dhaka.

Singh, S.K. & al. (2023). Pteridophytes of Meghalaya. A pictorial guide: 1-246. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh.

VERNACULAR NAME

English: Tongue fern, Close-growing pyrrosia, Tongue-fern, Lanceleaf tongue fern
Chinese (simplified): 贴生石韦
Chinese (traditional): 貼生石韋
Indonesian: Picisan
Japanese: ヒトツバマメヅタ
Java: Picisan
Russian: Пиррозия ланцетная
Thai: เฟิร์นเจ้างูเขียว

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