Occurrence of the wood fern Arachniodes sledgei Fraser-Jenk. (Pteridophyta: Dryopteridaceae) in the northern Western Ghats, India

Authors

  • Sachin Patil Laboratory of Life-science, Shahid Veerpatni Laxmi Mahavidyalaya, Titave, Maharashtra 416208, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6408-1901
  • Jagannath Patil National Assessment and Accreditation Council Bengaluru, Naagarabhaavi, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560072, India. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7777-3923

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9968.18.2.28424-28427

Keywords:

Africa, Asia, diversity, distribution, Dryopteris, ecology, Kolhapur, Polystichum, pteridophytes, taxonomy

Abstract

The genus Arachniodes (Dryopteridaceae) is mainly distributed in tropical Asia, with Indian records largely confined to the Himalaya, northeastern India, and southern Western Ghats. No confirmed report existed from the northern Western Ghats of Maharashtra. The present note discusses the occurrence of Arachniodes sledgei Fraser-Jenk. as a new distributional record for the northern Western Ghats of Maharashtra. A detailed morphological description, distribution, ecology, conservation status, and photographs are given. The field surveys conducted during 2023–2025 in Kolhapur District yielded specimens that were identified through morphological comparison with standard floras and herbarium collections. This finding extends the known distribution of the species and highlights the need for further pteridophyte exploration and conservation assessment in the northern Western Ghats.

Author Biographies

Sachin Patil, Laboratory of Life-science, Shahid Veerpatni Laxmi Mahavidyalaya, Titave, Maharashtra 416208, India.

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Jagannath Patil, National Assessment and Accreditation Council Bengaluru, Naagarabhaavi, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560072, India.

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References

Benniamin, A. & M.S. Sundari (2020). Pteridophytes of Western Ghats — A Pictorial Guide.

Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehradun, India, 203 pp.

Fraser-Jenkins, C.R., K.N. Gandhi & B.S. Kholia (2018). An Annotated Checklist of Indian Pteridophytes Part-II (Woodsiaceae to Dryopteridaceae). Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehra Dun, 582 pp.

Lu, N.T., Ebihara, A., Hec, H., Zhang, L., Zhou, X.-M., Knapp, R., Kamau, P., Lorence, D., Gao, X.-F. & L.-B. Zhang (2019). A plastid phylogeny of the fern genus Arachniodes (Dryopteridaceae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 133: 214–245.

Manickam, V.S. & V. Irudayaraj (1992). Pteridophyte Flora of Western Ghats, South India. B. I. Publication, New Delhi, 635 pp.

POWO (2026). Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. https://powo.science.kew.org/. Accessed on 18.ii.2026.

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Published

26-02-2026

Issue

Vol. 18 No. 2 (2026)

Section

Short Communications

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Copyright (c) 2026 Sachin Patil, Jagannath Patil

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