Species
Parablechnum minus
Etymology
minus: small; from the Latin minor
Common Name(s)
swamp kiokio
Current Conservation Status
2012 - Not Threatened
Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB
Previous Conservation Status
2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened
Authority
Parablechnum minus (R.Br.) Gasper et Salino
Family
Blechnaceae
Flora Category
Vascular - Native
BLEMIN
The
National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
Structural Class
Ferns
Synonyms
Lomaria capensis var. minor (R.Br.) Cheeseman; Lomaria procera var. gracilis Colenso; Lomaria procera var. minor (R.Br.) Hook.f.; Lomaria minor (R.Br.) Spreng.; Stegania minor R.Br.; Blechnum capense var. minus (R.Br.) Domin; Blechnum minus (R.Br.) Ettingsh.
Distribution
Indigenous. New Zealand: North, South, Chatham Islands. Also Australia from where it was first described.
Habitat
Coastal to lower montane in swampy ground within swamp forest, wetlands and along the margins of freshwater lakes, streams and rivers.
Features
Rhizome creeping to erect. Fronds dimorphic, 0.10–1.65 × 0.025–0.42 m. Stipe 20–330 mm long, stramineous to red-brown, darkening towards the base; scales cordate to linear, acuminate to subulate, entire to slightly dentate, brown to red-brown, often darker at the base of the scale. Lamina lanceolate to ovate, pinnate, with 3–37 pairs of pinnae; rachis and costae stramineous, brown to red-brown, scaly; scales linear, subulate, entire to somewhat dentate, stramineous to dark red-brown (rarely with broad cordate bases); sterile pinnae narrowly oblong with acute apices, 15–220 × 5–17 mm, shortly stalked towards lamina base, basiscopically adnate and sometimes winged at apex; margins finely serrate; basal pinnae aurciulate; fertile pinnae 0.06–0.21 m long, 1.5–5.0 mm wide; lowest pinnae with expanded sterile segments at rachis.
Similar Taxa
Parablechnum minus is superficially similar to the much larger P. novae-zelandiae. Parablechnum minus is most reliably distinguished from P. novae-zelandiae by the smaller, delicate fronds bearing fewer pairs of narrower, widely spaced pinnae with distinctly rounded ends, further, the scales of P. minus are uniformly pale brown, never black-spotted. Nevertheless Chambers & Farrant (1998a) did not accept P. minus (as Blechnum minus) for New Zealand attributing plants such as that described here to depauperate P. novae-zelandiae. While it is plausible that some New Zealand plants attributed to Parablechnum minus are stressed states of P. novae-zelandiae, the majority are not, and their condition is retained by cultivation and from specimens raised by spores.
Flowering
N.A.
Flower Colours
No Flowers
Fruiting
N.A
Propagation Technique
Easily grown from spores, division of established plants and by transplants. Although it does best in full sun planted within a permanently damp soil, it also can be grown in shade and also on dry soils.
Threats
Not Threatened
Chromosome No.
2n = 56
Endemic Taxon
No
Endemic Genus
No
Endemic Family
No
TAXONOMIC NOTES
Perrie et al. (2014) advocated for a broadened circumscription of Blechnaceae whereby a number of genera traditionally recognized as distinct from Blechnum were merged within it. However, this view has not met with universal acceptance (see Gasper et al. 2016) and does not seem to be followed worldwide (PPG 2016). From a New Zealand perspective the decision to merge Doodia in Blechnum, and rejection of Diploblechnum has not been universally accepted either e.g., Wilcox & Warden (2017), and as such it is considered appropriate to follow world opinion and accept the taxonomy of Gasper et al. (2016) and recommendations of the PPG (2016). See also comments by Pyner (2017).
Fact Sheet Citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of Access): Parablechnum minus Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. http://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora_details.aspx?ID=2070 (Date website was queried)
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange (19 September 2012). Description adapted Chambers & Farrant (1998b)
References and further reading
Chambers, T.C.; Farrant, P.A. 1998a: The Blechnum procerum (“capense”) (Blechnaceae) complex in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Botany 36: 1-19.
Chambers, T.C.; Farrant, P.A. 1998b: Blechnaceae. Flora of Australia 48: 359-384. ABRS/CSIRO Australia, Victoria
Gasper, A.L.; de Oliveira Dittrich, V.A.; Smith A.R.; Salino, A. 2016: A classification for Blechnaceae (Polypodiales: Polypodiopsida): New genera, resurrected names, and combinations. Phytotaxa 275: 191–227.
Perrie, L.R.; Wilson, R.K.; Shepherd, L.D.; Ohlsen, D.J.; Batty, E.L.; Brownsey, P.J.; Bayly, M.J. 2014: Molecular phylogenetics and generic taxonomy of Blechnaceae ferns. Taxon 63(4): 745-758.
PPG 1: The Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group 2016: A community-derived classification for extant lycophytes and ferns. Journal of Systematics and Evolution 54: 563-603.
Pyner, T. 2017: A new classification of Blechnum. British Pteridological Society. https://ebps.org.uk/new-classification-blechnum/
Wilcox, M.; Warden, J. 2017: Botany of Hillsborough coast bush reserves, Manukau Harbour, Auckland. Auckland Botanical Society Journal 72: 32-46.
This page last updated on 5 Sep 2017