Cystopteris Cystopteris, (L.) Bernh.

1. C. fragilis (L.) Bernh. View in CoL in Schrader, Neues Jour. Bot. 1 (2): 27 (1806)

( C. alpina (Roth) Desv. , C. regia (L.) Desv. ).

Rhizome c. 5 mm in diameter, short, much-branched, covered with old leaf-bases, and with lanceolate, acuminate scales at the apex. Leaves 5-45 cm, tufted, 2- to 3-pinnate; petiole as long as lamina; lamina dull green, glabrous, lanceolate, acute; pinnae up to c. 5 cm, subopposite, subsessile, ovate-lanceolate, becoming increasingly distant below, the second pair from the base usually the longest; pinnules up to c. 15 mm, ovate to oblong, entire and dentate to pinnate; teeth acute to obtuse, sometimes bidentate at the apex, often dentate on the margins; veins ending in the apices of the teeth or excurrent from the retuse sinus. Indusium ovate-lanceolate, acuminate; spores echinate. 2/7= 168,252. Mostlyon shady, basic rocks. Throughout Europe; mainly on mountains in the Mediterranean region. All except Tu.

C. alpina and C. regia include mainly calcicolous, alpine plants with small dissected leaves and with veins which frequently end in the apical notch of emarginate teeth. Because of the considerable intergradation of morphological characters, distribution, and habitat between these and typical C. fragilis , it has been necessary to treat them all as a single species.