鳞瓦韦 lin wa wei

Polypodium kawakamii Hayata, Bot. Mag. (Tokyo) 23: 77. 1909.

Rhizome long creeping, 2-3 mm in diam., with scales caducous, mainly at apex and near phyllopodia; scales ovate or acuminately ovate, 1-1.2 × 1-1.1 mm, basifixed, margin entire, apex acuminate; lumina uniformly small. Fronds 0.5-1.5 cm apart; stipe 7-15 cm, 1.5-2 mm in diam.; lamina linear-lanceolate, 25-40 × 1-2 cm, widest at or below middle, leathery or softly leathery, scales orbicular or lanceolate; veinlets obscure. Sori medial or sometimes nearer margin, 3-4.5 mm in diam.; paraphyses orbicular, 0.5-0.7 mm in diam., usually very thin.

● On tree trunks in forests; 1700-2700 m. Taiwan.

Lepisorus kawakamii has often been treated as a synonym of L. megasorus. The two species can be distinguished as follows: in L. kawakamii the lamina is linear-lanceolate, the rhizome scales are usually ovate or acuminately ovate with entire margins, and the paraphyses are small, thin, and pale brown, while in L. megasorus the lamina is lanceolate, widest near the base, the rhizome scales are lanceolate with denticulate margins, and the paraphyses are relatively large, thick and brown. Sometimes, the scales in L. kawakamii are lanceolate, but the linear-lanceolate lamina, thin paraphyses, and much closer sori are reliable markers for this species.