Checklist of the Ferns and Fern Allies of the Ivy Creek Natural Area

compiled by Tim Williams, 7/1995, revised 3/2012

Ferns and Fern Allies

Ferns and their allies are very ancient plants. They were present at the time of the dinosaurs, before any of the flowering plants arose.

Ferns and their allies can be distinguished from other plants by two simple characteristics. First, unlike true mosses and in common with flowering plants, these are vascular plants. That is, they have specialized woody tissue used to transport water through out the plant. This allows them to live in areas with variable moisture and to grow taller than mosses.

Second, like mosses, these plants reproduce by means of spores and not seeds. In ferns and fern allies, spores germinate to form free living plants (the prothallus) that function as flowers. These, in turn, give rise to the mature plants we recognize.

Fern Allies

Horsetails	Equisetaceae
Clubmosses Running Cedar Princess Pine Shining Clubmoss	Lycopodiaceae Lycopodium digitatum Lycopodium obscurum Lycopodium lucidulum
Spikemosses Meadow Spikemoss	Selaginellaceae Selaginella apoda
Quillworts	Isoetaceae

The True Ferns

Grape Ferns	Ophiglossaceae
Lace-frond grape fern	Botrychium dissectum var. dissectum
Oblique grape fern	Botrychium dissectum var. obliquum
Rattlesnake fern	Botrychium virginianum
Southern Adder’s tongue	Ophioglossum vulgatum var. pycnostichum
Royal Ferns Cinnamon fern Interrupted fern Royal fern	Osmundiaceae Osmunda cinnamomea Osmunda claytoniana Osmunda regalis
PolyPody Family Rock cap fern	Polypodiaceae Polypodium virginianum
Bracken Family Hay scented fern Bracken	Dennstaedtiaceae Dennstaedtia punctilobulia Pteridium aquilinum
Maidenhair Family Maidenhair fern	Adiantaceae Adiantum pedatum
Spleenwort Family Ebony spleenwort Walking fern Maidenhair spleenwort Lady fern Spinulose Wood fern Crested Wood fern Intermediate Wood fern Marginal Wood fern Beech fern Christmas fern New York fern Marsh fern Blunt Cliff fern	Aspleniaceae Asplenium platyneuron Asplenium rhizophyllum Asplenium trichomanes Athyrium asplenoides Dryopteris carthusiana Dryopteris cristata Dryopteris intermedia Dryopteris marginalis Phegopteris hexagonoptera Polystichium acrostichoides Thelypteris noveboracensis Thelypteris palustris Woodsia obtusa
Sensitive Ferns Sensitive fern	Onocleaceae Onoclea sensibilis