Dryopteris athamantica (Kunze) Kuntze

Plants terrestrial or epilithic. Rhizomes to 200 mm long, decumbent to suberect, mostly closely branched, to 13 mm in diameter, set with roots, crowded stipe bases, and scales, the scales ferrugineous, chartaceous, broadly attached, oblong-acuminate to narrowly lanceolate, to 18 x 2 mm, the margins entire or irregularly set with filiform marginal outgrowths, the scale apex filiform, terminating in an oblong thin-walled cell. Fronds crowded, erect, to 1.31 m long, up to 6 at each rhizome apex; stipes stout, proximally castaneous, stramineous higher up, adaxially shallowly sulcate, to 540 mm long, to 14 mm in diameter, moderately to densely scaled, often subglabrous later, the scales ferrugineous, chartaceous, broadly attached, linear-acuminate to oblong-acuminate, to 24 x 2.5 mm, cuneate, entire, with long twisted, pluricellular filiform outgrowths, or with a few scattered glands along the margins, the scale apex filiform, terminating in an oblong thin-walled cell; laminae firmly herbaceous, anadromous, iso-, or catadromous towards the apex, narrowly ovate, to 780 mm long, to 3-pinnate, with up to 23 opposite to alternate pinna pairs; rachises stramineous to greenish, adaxially sulcate, narrowly winged towards the lamina apex, moderately to sparsely set with scales and hairs, the scales twisted, ferrugineous to stramineous, chartaceous, sessile, linear to filiform, to 6 mm long, to 0.6 mm wide, cuneate, entire, the scale apex terminates in an oblong thin-walled cell; pinnae petiolate, the petiole to 12 mm long, widely spaced at the base, the pinnae mostly somewhat imbricate towards the lamina apex, the basal pinna pair mostly longest, inaequilaterally broadly ovate, to 185 mm long, to 123 mm wide, mostly basiscopically developed, to 2-pinnate, those higher up symmetrically lanceolate, with up to 8 petiolated pinna pairs; pinna-rachises set at an angle of 45° or less to the rachis, adaxially shallowly sulcate, the sulcus confluent with that of the rachis, narrowly winged for most of its length, sparsely scaled, the scales ferrugineous to stramineous, chartaceous, sessile, linear to filiform, to 4 mm long, to 0.4 mm wide, entire, the scale apex terminates in an oblong thin-walled cell; pinnules petiolate, the petiole to 2 mm long, mostly somewhat imbricate, the pinnules to 1-pinnate, inaequilaterally lanceolate, acroscopically developed, the acroscopic pinnule on the basal pinna pair to 48 mm long, to 28 mm wide, the basiscopic pinnule on the basal pinna pair to 72 mm long, to 30 mm wide; costae adaxially shallowly sulcate, narrowly winged; segments spaced, inaequilaterally narrowly trullate, narrowly triangular, narrowly rhomboid or oblong-obtuse, cuneate, to 20 mm long, to 7 mm wide, basiscopically decurrent, often shallowly lobed; lobes denticulate to crenate, adaxially glabrous or with a few filiform scales along the costae, abaxially sparsely set with filiform scales, uniseriate hairs bearing one or more glandular cells near base, isocytic hairs, and often also with clavate glands (54-)73(-112) mm long. Venation anadromous, becoming catadromous towards the lamina and pinna apex, pinnately branched in the segments, the vein branches pinnately branched, forked or simple, evident, ending in the teeth near the margin, the endings often slightly thickened. Stomata mostly of the polocytic type, (36-)49(-68) mm long. Sori circular, to 1.6 mm in diameter at maturity, inframedial on predominantly anadromous vein branches, discrete or touching at maturity; sporangia stalks simple or haired, the capsule with (11-)14(-22) indurated annulus cells. Indusia brown, firmly herbaceous, reniform, entire to erose, to 1.7 mm in diameter. Spores ellipsoidal, monolete, the perispore with narrow to broad reticulate ridges, granulate, (40-)45(-50) x (30-)33(-36) µm.

Around boulder-bases in grassland and about forest margins at elevations of 1,200-2,135 metres.

Can be grown by seedlings.