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Coville's lip fern facts for kids

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Coville's lip fern
Cheilanthes covillei 3.jpg
Conservation status

Apparently Secure (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Genus:
Myriopteris
Species:
covillei
Synonyms
  • Allosorus myriophyllus var. covillei (Maxon) Farw.
  • Cheilanthes covillei Maxon
  • Hemionitis covillei (Maxon) Christenh.

Myriopteris covillei, formerly known as Cheilanthes covillei, is a species of lip fern known by the common name Coville's lip fern.

Coville's lip fern is native to California, Baja California, Arizona, Oregon, and Utah. It grows in rocky crevices in the mountains and foothills.

In California it is found in chaparral, yellow pine forest, pinyon-juniper woodland, and Joshua tree woodland habitats.

Description

This fern has green leaves which may be up to 4-pinnate, that is, made up of leaflets that subdivide 3 times, such that the leaflets are layered with overlapping rounded segments. The leaves have a bumpy, cobbled look.

The undersides of the leaves have scales which are lengthened outgrowths of the epidermis. Tucked under the scales are the sporangia, which make the spores.

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