Cyathea manniana Hook.

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Photo: Bart Wursten
Bunga Forest, Vumba

Photo: Petra Ballings
SRGH

Photo: Bart Wursten
Above fern gully, Vumba

Photo: Petra Ballings
John Meikle Forestry Estate, Stapleford

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Synonyms:	Alsophila manniana (Hook.) R. M. Tryon Cyathea deckenii Kuhn Cyathea laurentiorum Christ Cyathea sellae Pirotta Cyathea usambarensis Hieron.
Common names:	Spiny tree fern (English)
Frequency:	Local
Status:	Native
Description:	Tree fern. Caudex slender, 7 m × 10 cm, occasionally sending down lateral "prop" stems which are eventually creeping and may form a new upright caudex. Fronds firmly chartaceous. Stem covered with harsh spines; without aphlebia in the crown of the stem. Stipe spiny, 30 -50 cm long, light to dark brown, covered with glossy, brown, entire, lanceolate scales when young. Lamina up to 2.4 m × 1 m, 3-pinnatifid, ovate in outline. Pinnae up to 52 × 20 cm, oblong, acute, pinnate into narrowly shortly attenuate pinnate pinnules; ultimate segments narrowly oblong-falcate, apex acute to sharply obtuse, margins entire to minutely crenate; upper surface dark green, glabrous, with minute, brown hair-like scales along the costae, lower surface pale green, glabrous but with brown, ovate scales scattered along the costules and costae; rhachis shiny brown with scattered small prickles, glabrous at maturity. Sori up to 9 per pinnule segment, round, indusium unequally cup-shaped.
Notes:	Readily recognizable by the harshly spiny stem.
Derivation of specific name:	manniana: first collected by G. Mann, a German botanist
Habitat:	Along mountain streams in evergreen forest, deep shade
Altitude range: (metres)	920 - 2000 m
Worldwide distribution:	Angola, Annobon, Bioko, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, DRC, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tomé, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimba
Zimbabwe distribution:	E
Growth form(s):	Tree, shrub over 2 m, terrestrial.
Endemic status:
Red data list status:	Lower Risk - near threatened
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters:	Display spot characters for this species
Images last updated:	Sunday 1 August 2010
Literature:	Burrows, J.E. (1990). Southern African Ferns and Fern Allies. Frandsen, Sandton. Page 87. (Includes a picture). Burrows, J.E. & Burrows, S.M. (1993). An annotated check-list of the pteridophytes of Malawi Kirkia 14(1) Page 84. Burrows, J.E. & Willis, C.K. (eds) (2005). Plants of the Nyika Plateau Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 31 SABONET, Pretoria Page 27. (Includes a picture). Burrows, J.E., Burrows, S.M., Lötter, M.C. & Schmidt, E. (2018). Trees and Shrubs Mozambique Publishing Print Matters (Pty), Cape Town. Page 30. (Includes a picture). Coates Palgrave, K. (revised and updated by Meg Coates Palgrave) (2002). Trees of Southern Africa 3rd edition. Struik, South Africa Page 73. (Includes a picture). Da Silva, M.C., Izidine, S. & Amude, A.B. (2004). A preliminary checklist of the vascular plants of Mozambique. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 30 Sabonet, Pretoria Page 10. Dowsett-Lemaire, F. (1989). The flora and phytogeography of the evergreen forests of Malawi. I: Afromontane and mid-altitude forests; Bull. Jard. Bot. Nat. Belg. 59(1/2) Page 25. Drummond, R.B. (1975). A list of trees, shrubs and woody climbers indigenous or naturalised in Rhodesia. Kirkia 10(1) Page 231. Golding, J.S. (ed.) (2002). Zimbabwe Plant Red Data List. Southern African Plant Red Data Lists. SABONET 14 Page 173. Jacobsen, W.B.G. (1983). The Ferns and Fern Allies of Southern Africa. Butterworths, Durban and Pretoria. Pages 200 - 201. As Alsophila manniana (Hook.) R.M. Tryon (Includes a picture). Kornas, J. (1979). Distribution and ecology of the Pteridophytes in Zambia Polska Akademia Nauk Wydzial II Nauk Biologicznych Page 81. Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 6. Roux, J.P. (2001). Conspectus of Southern African Pteridophyta. Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report 13 Page 86. Roux, J.P. (2009). Synopsis of the Lycopodiophyta and Pteridophyta of Africa, Madagascar and neighbouring islands Pages 64 - 65. As Alsophila manniana (Hook.) R.M.Tyron Schelpe, E.A.C.L.E. (1970). Pteridophyta Flora Zambesiaca Pages 72 - 74. (Includes a picture). White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. & Chapman, J.D. (2001). Evergreen forest flora of Malawi Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Page 78.

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