POLYPODIACEAE

Polypodium hesperium Maxon

Western polypody

( Fertile tetraploid)
The pinnatifid character of the blades of this fern is distinctive. The broad elliptical sori without indusia are also definitive. There are only two species of this fern in New Mexico, P. hesperium. which is not uncommon in the western and northern montane areas, and P. saximontanum which has only been collected a few times in Rio Arriba County in the northern part of the state. Interestingly, this is the only fern genus in the state for which the the sense of taste is employed in botanical description.

Pinos Altos Range, Grant County     23 July 1992