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Nephrolepis falcata

Maire ‘Iku-ika (MT)

Fishtail Sword-fern

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Fronds (infertile and fertile) and detail	95KB
Image:	Fertile frond and detail	114KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Fishtail Sword-fern, Fishtail Fern, Weeping Sword-fern

TRADITIONAL NAMES: ‘Iku-ika (MK), Maire ‘Iku-ika (MT)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE New Guinea - ?Indonesia - ?se.Asia

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; Land

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental fern

KEY FEATURES: To 50cm. FRONDS erect to sprawling, pinnate, pinnae decreasing to tip. PINNAE some long oval, wides at base, tapering to long shart tip, XXXXXcm; most with central division to give two tips, fishtail-like.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+++		+++	++	+		-	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Nephrolepis falcata (Cav.)
SYNONYMS: Nephrolepis falcata f. furcans; Nephrolepis falcata 'Furcans'; Nephrolepis biserrata var. furcans; Nephrolepis biserrata 'Furcans'

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; PTERIDOPHYTA (=Pterophyta); Aspidiales; OLEANDRACEAE

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.15 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.445 Tropica

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zupB04b, zM04b, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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