Dicksonia sellowiana

Dicksonia sellowiana, the xaxim, or samambaiaçu or imperial samambaiaçu, is an arborescent fern in the family Dicksoniaceae, native to the tropical Americas.

Dicksonia sellowiana
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Cyatheales
Family: Dicksoniaceae
Genus: Dicksonia
Species:
D. sellowiana
Binomial name
Dicksonia sellowiana

Distribution

The fern is native to Southern Mexico, Central America, and South America.

In the South American Atlantic Forest biome, it is found in: Southeastern Brazil within in the states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul; in northeast of Argentina within Misiones Province; and within eastern Paraguay.

Description

Dicksonia sellowiana has an erect and cilindric caudex, reaching sometimes more than 10 metres (33 ft) high, the fronds are bipinnate and 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long. Due to illegal extraction, the species is at risk of extinction.

Varieties

Dicksonia sellowiana is variable in its form. Variations are sometimes treated as separate varieties, which include:[1]

  • Dicksonia sellowiana var. ghiesbreghtii
  • Dicksonia sellowiana var. gigantea
  • Dicksonia sellowiana var. karsteniana
  • Dicksonia sellowiana var. lobulata

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-09-15. Retrieved 2011-08-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)


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