Polypodiaceae is a family of ferns. In the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I), the family includes around 65 genera and an estimated 1,650 species and is placed in the order Polypodiales, suborder Polypodiineae. A broader circumscription has also been used, in which the family includes other families kept separate in PPG I. Nearly all species are epiphytes, but some are terrestrial.
Description
Stems of Polypodiaceae range from erect to long-creeping. The fronds are entire, pinnatifid, or variously forked or pinnate. The petioles lack stipules. The scaly rhizomes are generally creeping in nature. Polypodiaceae species are found in wet climates, most commonly in rain forests. In temperate zones, most species tend to be epiphytic or epipetric.
Notable examples of ferns in this family include the resurrection fern (Pleopeltis polypodioides) and the golden serpent fern (Phlebodium aureum).
Taxonomy
Two distinct circumscriptions of the family are in use. The Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I) uses a circumscription of Polypodiaceae in which the family is placed in the suborder Polypodiineae (eupolypods I), along with eight other families. The relationship between the families is shown in the consensus cladogram below.
body.skin-vector-2022
Polypodiineae
Didymochlaenaceae
Hypodematiaceae
Dryopteridaceae
Nephrolepidaceae
Lomariopsidaceae
Tectariaceae
Oleandraceae
Davalliaceae
Polypodiaceae
(eupolypods I)
An alternative approach treats the suborder Polypodiineae as the family Polypodiaceae sensu lato, and reduces the families to subfamilies, so that the Polypodiaceae sensu stricto becomes the subfamily Polypodioideae. The broader circumscription is used by Plants of the World...
