ICONES FILICUM SINICARUM 
PLATE 116 
WOODWARDIA ORIENTALIS Swartz 
POLYPODIACEA 
WOODWARDIA ORIENTALIS Swartz in Schrad. Journ. Bot. 18002. 76 (1801); Syn. Fil. 
117, 315 (1806); Willd. Sp. Pl. 5: 418 (1810); Kze, Pterid. Jap. in Bot. Zeit. 
(1868) 323; Hk. Sp. Fil. 8: 68 (1860); Syn. Fil. 188 (1867); Ching, Bull. Fan 
Mem. Inst. Biol. 2: 3 t. 1 (1981); C. Chr. Ind. Fil. Suppl. III. 196 (1934). 
Blechnum radicans var. Houtt. Nat. Hist. 2: t. 97 f. I (1783). 
Woodwardia radicans var. auriculata Kuhn, Journ. Bot. (1868) 268. 
Woodwardia radicans var. orientalis C. Chr. Ind. Fil. 658 (1905) 
Woodwardia angustiloba Hance, Journ. Bot. (1868) 176. 
Woodwardia japonica Hk. Journ. Bot. (1857) 341, pro parte. 
Woodwardia radicans Christ (non Sm. 1793) in Warburg, Monsunia 1: 66 (1900). 
Woodwardia prolifera Hk. et Arn. in Bot. Beech. Voy. 275 t. 56 (1836-40); Nakai, Bot. Mag 
Tokio 39: 105 (1925). 
Woodwardia exaltata Nakai, Bot. Mag. Tokio 35: 149 (1925). e 
Rhizome thick, woody, erect, densely clothed at apex in very large, bright 
brown, lanceolate acuminate, membranaceous scales 2-4 om long; stipe ceespitose, 
thick, 30 cm long or longer, rufo-straminous, sparcely scaly throughout, lamina 
oblong-ovate, 30-50 em long, 20 cm broad, bipinnatifid; pinnzx 6-8-jugate under the 
deeply pinnatifid acuminate end-pinna With shortly decurrent base, subopposite, 
10-13 cm long, 4-5 cm broad, broadly lanceolate, acuminate, base subequal or often 
strongly unequal, z.e. the lower basal 1-2 segments suppressed, leaving a wingless 
costa, the anterior basal segment more or less decurrent; segments oblong-lanceolate, 
shortly acuminate, sharply serrated; venation obscure, areole imperfectly 2-rowed 
along costa; texture rigidly coriaceous; sori oblong-linear, immersed, uniseriate 
and close to costule, 7ndusium brown, thick, vaulted. 
Fukien: Foo-chow, Gregory (1857) in herb. Hance (type of W. angustiloba) ; 
Warburg; Santu Island, Matthew, Oct. 3, 1907; Diongloh Hsien, H. H. Chung 1244; 
Nan-ching, Schindler 407; Yengping, H. H. Chung 2936; Chuan-chow, H. H. Chung 
3082; Inghok, H. H. Chung 2639. Hongkong: Victoria Peak, Tutcher 670. Che- 
kiang: Ningpo, Hancock 5 (1877). Kwangtung: Swatow, Thai-yong, Dalziel, July, 
1899; Nam-yung, S. P. Ko 50759; Lokchong, N. K. Chun 42727, 42462. 
Also Japan, Formosa, Liu-kiu and the Philippines. 
Type from Japan (leg. Thunberg) and was first identified by Houttuyn un- 
der Blechnum radicans var. In the herbarium Thunberg, there are to be found four 
sheets of Woodwardia, of which only one marked B is the true W. japonica, while 
the other three are representing the present species. The type in herb. Swartz 
matches Houttuyn’s figure exactly. Our fern has generally been considered as 
identical with W. radicans (L.) Sm. of Europe and America, but the. differences 
between the two closely related species have already been contrasted by me (Cf. 
Bull. Fan Mem. Inst. Biol. 2: 6-7, pls. I-11). 
Var. prolifera Ching, Bull. Fan Mem. Inst. Biol. 2: 6 (1931); C. Chr. Ind. Fil. 
Suppl. IIT. 196 (1934). 
Woodwardia prolifera Hk. et Arn. in Bot. Beech. Voy. 275 t. 56. 
Woodwardia exaltata Nakia, Bot. Mag. Tokio 35: 149 (1921). 
Differs from the typical form only in the frond being copiously gemmiferous 
above. 
Fukien: Foo-chow, Fortune (1853); Carles (1885); Min-chow, H. H. Chung 
1905, 2086; Amoy, H. H. Chung 105. Kwangtung: Jao-ping, Lokchong, N. K. 
Chun 42784. Wiu-kiu: Beechey (type); C. Wright. Formosa: Tamsui, Oldham 20, 
245. 
Plate 116. Fig. 1. Habit sketch (natural size). 2. Portion of segment, showing venation and sori 
(x 10). 3. Scale from base of stipe (x 16). 4. Pinna of var. prolifera (natural size). 5. Young plant 
developed from a gemma (x 16). 
