Galapagos Species Database
The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.
Pteridium esculentum subsp. gryphus
Helecho, Bracken fern
Rhizomes long-creeping. Fronds to 3 m long; laminae proximally 3–4-pinnate with free lobes between the segments. Totally covered by gnarled hairs, and with lax "arachnoid" hairs abaxially (Schwartsburd et al., 2018).
Domain
Eukaryota
Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Pteridophyta
Class
Pteridopsida
Order
Polypodiales
Family
Dennstaedtiaceae
Genus
Pteridium
Species
esculentum
Subspecies
subsp. gryphus
Taxon category: Accepted
Syn.: Pteridium aquilinum var. arachnoideum (Kaulf.) Herter; Syn.: Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn; Syn.: Pteridium arachnoideum (Kaulf.) Maxon; Wolf et al. (2015) identified the taxa from Galápagos as Pteridium esculentum subsp. arachnoideum, but according to Schwartsburd et al. (2018), it corresponds to P. esculentum subsp. gryphus, due to the presence of free lobes and gnarled hairs, and the occurrence in Galapagos
Origin: Native
Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.
Distribution: Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, French Guiana, Ecuador (including Galapagos Isl.), Peru, Bolivia, and northwestern Argentina; possibly also in Mexico, Central America, Suriname, and northern Brazil; from sea level to ca. 3500 m (ca. 300–750 m in Galapagos) (Schwartsburd et al., 2018).
- GBIF Secretariat (2021) GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei Accessed via https://www.gbif.org/species/5284517
- Hassler, M. (2022) World Ferns. Synonymic Checklist and Distribution of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World Hassler, M. (2022). World Ferns. Synonymic Checklist and Distribution of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World. Version 12.11; last update March 7th, 2022. www.worldplants.de/ferns/.
- Schwartsburd, P. Yañez, A. & Prado, J. (2018) Formal recognition of six subordinate taxa within the South American bracken fern, Pteridium esculentum (P. esculentum subsp. arachnoideum s.l.—Dennstaedtiaceae), based on morphology and geography Phytotaxa, 333(1), 22-40.
- Schwartsburd, P. Navarrete, H., Smith, A. & Kessler, M. (2017) Prodromus of a fern flora for Bolivia. XXVI. Dennstaedtiaceae Schwartsburd, P., Navarrete, H., Smith, A. & Kessler, M. (2017). Prodromus of a fern flora for Bolivia. XXVI. Dennstaedtiaceae. Phytotaxa, 332(3): 251-268.
- Wolf, P.G. Rowe, C., Der, J., Schilling, M., Visger, C. & Thomson, J. (2015) Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago Wolf, P.G., Rowe, C., Der, J., Schilling, M., Visger, C. & Thomson, J. (2015). Origins and diversity of a cosmopolitan fern genus on an island archipelago. AoB PLANTS, 7, plv118. https://doi.org/10.1093/aobpla/plv118
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This page should be cited as follows:
"Galapagos Species Database, Pteridium esculentum subsp. gryphus", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=20457. Accessed 4 November 2026.