Christella dentata (Forssk.) Brownsey & Jermy

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Photo: Petra Ballings
By the Swynnerton Memorial, Chirinda Forest

Photo: Petra Ballings
Road from Mt Selinda to Espungabera border post

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Synonyms:	Cyclosorus dentatus (Forssk.) Ching Dryopteris dentata (Forssk.) C.Chr. Polypodium dentatum Forssk. Thelypteris dentata (Forssk.) E. P. St. John var. dentata
Common names:
Frequency:
Status:	Native
Description:	Rhizome shortly creeping, c. 10 mm in diameter; rhizome scales c. 5 mm long, dark brown, thinly pilose, entire. Fronds closely spaced, arching, not proliferous, thinly herbaceous. Stipe up to 25 cm long, pale to greyish brown, minutely pubescent to subglabrous. Lamina up to 1.6 × 0.54 m, narrowly elliptic to lanceolate in outline, deeply 2-pinnatifid, apex tapering to a point with a deeply pinnatifid terminal segment, basal pinnae 1 or 2 pairs reduced. Pinnae narrowly lanceolate, ultimate lobes oblong, slightly falcate, apex rounded, basal acroscopic lobe enlarged and sometimes overlapping the rhachis; sparsely hairy on both surfaces, more so along the costa and costules; veins 1 pair meeting below the sinus and sometimes a single vein joining in the sinus. Rhachis thinly set with long hairs. Sori round, up to 20 per lobe; indusia small, hairy, up to 1 mm wide.
Notes:	Christella dentata resembles C. hispidula but the latter has one pair of veins meeting below the sinus (no additional single vein joining in the sinus) and an erect or inclining rhizome. C. buchananii has 2 or 3 pairs of gradually reducing pinnae, 2 or 3 pairs of veins meeting below the sinus. Christella dentata look for: 1 pair of veins meeting below the sinus and a single vein joining in the sinus, 1 or 2 pairs gradually reducing basal pinnae, shortly creeping rhizome.
Derivation of specific name:	dentata: toothed; referring to the lobed pinnae
Habitat:	Shady streambanks or low-altitude rivers in riverine forest.
Altitude range:	Up to 1600 m
Worldwide distribution:	Widespread in tropical and subtropical Africa, also in Yemen, Seychelles and Comoro Is., Madagascar, southern Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and introduced into tropical America.
Mozambique distribution:	N,Z
Growth form(s):	Terrestrial.
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters:	Display spot characters for this species
Literature:	Burrows, J.E. (1990). Southern African Ferns and Fern Allies. Frandsen, Sandton. Pages 263 - 264. As Thelypteris dentata var. dentata (Includes a picture). Burrows, J.E. & Burrows, S.M. (1993). An annotated check-list of the pteridophytes of Malawi Kirkia 14(1) Page 96. Burrows, J.E. & Willis, C.K. (eds) (2005). Plants of the Nyika Plateau Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 31 SABONET, Pretoria Page 43. as Thelypteris dentata dentata Chapano, C. & Mamuto, M. (2003). Plants of the Chimanimani District National Herbarium and Botanic Garden, Zimbabwe Page 55. As Thelypteris dentata dentata Crouch, N.R., Klopper, R.R., Burrows, J.E. & Burrows, S.M. (2011). Ferns of Southern Africa, A comprehensive guide Struik Nature Pages 684 - 685. (Includes a picture). Da Silva, M.C., Izidine, S. & Amude, A.B. (2004). A preliminary checklist of the vascular plants of Mozambique. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 30 Sabonet, Pretoria Page 15. Dowsett-Lemaire, F. (1989). The flora and phytogeography of the evergreen forests of Malawi. I: Afromontane and mid-altitude forests; Bull. Jard. Bot. Nat. Belg. 59(1/2) Page 26. As Thelypteris dentata Jacobsen, W.B.G. (1983). The Ferns and Fern Allies of Southern Africa. Butterworths, Durban and Pretoria. Pages 388 - 389. (Includes a picture). Kornas, J. (1979). Distribution and ecology of the Pteridophytes in Zambia Polska Akademia Nauk Wydzial II Nauk Biologicznych Pages 89 - 90. As Thelypteris dentata Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 10. Roux, J.P. (2001). Conspectus of Southern African Pteridophyta. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report 13 Page 120. Roux, J.P. (2009). Synopsis of the Lycopodiophyta and Pteridophyta of Africa, Madagascar and neighbouring islands Page 202. Schelpe, E.A.C.L.E. (1970). Pteridophyta Flora Zambesiaca Pages 197 - 198. As Thelypteris dentata var. dentata (Includes a picture). Wursten, B., Timberlake, J. & Darbyshire, I. (2017). The Chimanimani Mountains: an updated checklist. Kirkia 19(1) Page 80.

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Flora of Burundi: Christella dentata
Flora of Malawi: Christella dentata
Flora of Rwanda: Christella dentata
Flora of Zambia: Christella dentata
Flora of Zimbabwe: Christella dentata

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Christella dentata
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Christella dentata
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Christella dentata
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Christella dentata
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Christella dentata
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Christella dentata
JSTOR Plant Science: Christella dentata
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Christella dentata
Plants of the World Online: Christella dentata
Tropicos: Christella dentata
Wikipedia: Christella dentata