峨眉耳蕨 e mei er jue

Aspidium caruifolium Baker, J. Bot. 26: 228. 1888; Polystichum faberi Christ, nom. illeg. superfl.; P. omeiense C. Christensen (1906), nom. illeg. superfl., not Christ (1906).

Plants evergreen. Rhizome ascending, short, densely scaly; scales brown, ovate, small, subentire, acuminate. Fronds 20-60 cm; stipe stramineous, 5-15 cm, up to 1 mm in diam., young stipe densely scaly; scales brown, ovate, membranous, acuminate, opening acroscopically or appressed, upper part of some scales thickened and castaneous; scales on old stipe sparser, appressed. Lamina tri- to tetrapinnatilobate, yellowish green when fresh, grayish green when dry, narrowly elliptic or elliptic-oblanceolate, 15-45 × 3-10 cm at middle, shallowly cordate, shortly acuminate; rachis stramineous, without proliferous bulbils, sparsely scaly abaxially; scales narrowly lanceolate, appressed. Pinnae 25-40 pairs, approximate, mostly alternate, subsessile, attached at right angles to rachis or slightly ascendant, several basal pairs slightly contracted and reflexed, broadly lanceolate, apex acuminate or acute; lower pairs nearly ovate, bi- to tripinnatilobate; primary lobes 5-12 pairs per pinna on pinnae above middle of lamina, oblong-ovate, bases long cuneate and with narrow wings on both sides and decurrent connecting with wings of pinna rachis; secondary lobes 1-4 pairs, twice or once dichotomously branched, apical lobules simple; ultimate lobules linear, ca. 0.5 mm wide, margins entire, apices acute and spinulose; abaxially sparsely scaly; microscales brown, narrowly lanceolate; frond texture softly papery. Sori on upper part of ultimate lobules, terminal on veinlets; indusia present, membranous, entire, wider than ultimate lobules. Spores elliptic in polar view; perispore sculpturing granulate with few ridges but without perforations.

● Wet limestone rocks by streams, limestone cliffs, karst caves; 700-1800 m. Chongqing, W Guangxi (Leye), S and SW Guizhou (Dushan, Panxian), S and W Sichuan, NE and SE Yunnan.