Abstract
A new species of Adiantum is described from California. This species is endemic to northern California and is currently known only from Shasta County. We describe its discovery after first being collected over a century ago and distinguish it from Adiantum jordanii and Adiantum capillus-veneris. It is evergreen and is sometimes, but not always, associated with limestone. The range of Adiantum shastense Huiet & A.R.Sm., sp. nov., is similar to several other Shasta County endemics that occur in the mesic forests of the Eastern Klamath Range, close to Shasta Lake, on limestone and metasedimentary substrates.
Highlights
The genus Adiantum L. (Pteridaceae) is found worldwide mostly in the tropics and subtropics, but about ten percent of species are found in temperate regions
Of the four wide-ranging species, three Adiantum capillus-veneris, A. aleuticum and A. jordanii occur in California and none of these is endemic
Amongst them were all the recognized taxa in California: A. aleuticum, A. capillusveneris, and A. jordanii. It was while confirming the identity of a recent collection that we serendipitously stumbled upon the new species
Summary
The genus Adiantum L. (Pteridaceae) is found worldwide mostly in the tropics and subtropics, but about ten percent of species (of a total of ca. 225 spp.) are found in temperate regions. Of the four wide-ranging species, three Adiantum capillus-veneris, A. aleuticum and A. jordanii occur in California and none of these is endemic. They all are found in at least 30% of the counties, and their distributions span the entire state. While investigating Adiantum capillus-veneris populations in California as part of a worldwide molecular phylogenetic study of the genus, a new endemic species was discovered. We describe this new taxon and discuss its remarkable discovery after it was first collected over 100 years ago
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