Scientific Name: Acrostichum speciosum

Prev Next
Print This Page
  • Pronunciation:
    ak-row-STITCH-um spee-cee-OH-sum
  • Common Name:
    Mangrove Fern
  • Derivation:
    Acrostichum: Gr. acros - end or edge
  • Type:
    Fern , clumping
  • Family:
    PTERIDACEAE
  • Flowers:
    Ferns do not have flowers or fruit but produce spores on the backs of their leaves throughout the year.
  • Vegetation Type:
    Tidal Wetland. Tolerates fresh and salt water inundation Usually found on the landward edges of mangrove forests, high in the intertidal zone where there is a large freshwater input i.e. in wet, tropical river regions. The Mangrove Fern often dominates in areas that have been cleared or disturbed.
  • Species List:
    EdingtonDr, St. Teresa's, Mangrove, Cooroibah Conservation Park, Cooroibah Bushland Reserve, Janet, Cranks Creek, Batianoff 87, NNS, Noosa Banks, BHNR, Lake Cooroibah West, Regional Ecosystem 12.1.3.
Cultural Notes

Used as thatch in SE Asia.||stems eaten after roasting||

Identification Notes

Short creeping rhizome becomes massive in old specimens; frond erect; leaflets large, thick, leathery, dull green; sporangia continuous over the undersurface of some leaves as a dark mass.

Landscaping Notes

Shade