290 Seifriz: Plants on Mt. Gedeh, Java 



Another interesting fern is the stout Polypodium Feei, with its 

 mass of prominent sori completely covering the back of a fertile 

 frond. It grows in great profusion among the rocks near the 

 base of waterfalls. A variety of this same fern — a most adapt- 

 able and widely di-stributed species — is again found on the dry 

 lava floor of the crater of Mt. Gedeh. 



Tree-ferns are infrequently met with along the trail in the 

 lower subzones. They seek the more open forest formations 

 at higher altitudes or the sunny yet moist ravines. 



The epiphytic ferns with the tree-ferns distinguish a tropical 

 fern flora from a temperate one. The characteristic epiphytic 

 fern of the first subzone on Mt. Gedeh is the magnificent bird's 

 nest fern, Asplenium nidus (Plate 15, fig. 2). This huge fern, 

 with a spread of sometimes as much as 15 feet, may be seen 

 perched like a large bird with out-spread wings, upon a small 

 limb far out in space, or it may be found near the ground com- 

 pletely encircling a tree trunk, then resembling a fancy flower 

 basket. Occasionally one is seen apparently floating free in 

 the air, and only on close examination is the bent slender twig 

 supporting it discovered (Plate 16, fig. i). 



The nest shape of Asplenium nidus forms an ideal catch-all 

 for falling leaves and detritus, a natural basket always full of 

 rich organic matter. This fine substratum in turn supports 

 yet other epiphytic ferns. Some of these are of very good size, 

 such as Stenolepsis tristis and Nephrolepsis acuminata, with 

 fronds often 6-8 feet in length (Plate 16, fig. i). This 

 latter fern is one of the most graceful in the forest. 



While Asplenium nidus is the characteristic fern and epiphyte 

 of the first subzone, other epiphytic ferns are numerous. Chief 

 among these is Polypodium Heracleum, a rival in size though not in 

 abundance of Asplenium nidus. The large, deeply cleft fronds 

 of the Polypodium, measuring as much as 7 feet in length and 18 

 inches in width, surround a tree very much as does- the bird's 

 nest fern. This remarkable genus is the only one which has 

 representative species in all the subzones, from Tjibodas to the 

 crater of Gedeh . 



The long grass-like fern Vittaria elongata drapes the trees 

 and lianes in an attractive manner (Fig. 3). Several poly- 

 podiums, e.g., P. obliquatum, are common as epiphytes. And 

 one should not neglect the less conspicuous but beautiful and 



