Family

Cyatheaceae

Nomenclature

Cyathea latebrosa (Wall. ex Hook.) Copel., Philipp. J. Sci. 4: 52. 1909; Tardieu & C.Chr., Fl. Indo-Chine 7(2): 85. 1939; Holttum, Rev. Fl. Malaya ed. 1, 2: 120, f. 48. 1955 [‘1954’]; Holttum, Dansk Bot. Ark. 20: 18. 1961; Holttum, Fl. Males., Ser. II, Pterid. 1: 115. 1963; Holttum, Kew Bull. 19: 472. 1965; Tagawa & K.Iwats., SouthE. Asian Stud. 5: 45. 1967; Tagawa & K.Iwats., Fl. Thailand 3: 104. 1979; Boonkerd & Pollawatn, Pterid. Thailand: 114. 2000. – Alsophila latebrosa Wall. ex Hook., Sp. Fil. 1: 37. 1844; Bedd., Handb. Ferns Brit. India: 11. 1883; R.M.Tryon, Contr. Gray Herb. 200: 32. 1970; Newman et al., Checkl. Vasc. Pl. Lao PDR: 26. 2007.

Description

Trunks 3–5 m or more tall. Stipes 30–40 cm long, with very short spines, yellowish brown to darker, scaly at base; scales linear, to 2 cm long, 1.2 mm broad, dark brown, shining, stiff, the edges paler, ferrugineous, soon abraded; pneumathodes in a single rows separated or continuous, smooth, glabrescent or hairy on upper surface; lower pinnae reduced to 10 cm long, irregular in form, rather distant, larger pinnae about 40 cm long, 14 cm wide, narrowly oblong, caudately acuminate at apex; pinna-rachis warty beneath, hairy and sparsely scaly on upper surface; pinnules more than 25 pairs, larger ones about 1.6 cm apart, oblong-lanceolate, gradually narrowing towards acuminate apex, subtruncate at base, sessile, to 7 cm long, 1.7 cm wide, lobed nearly to costa; lobes oblique, falcate, round at apex, entire or slightly serrate at margin, to 1 cm long, 3 mm broad; costae hairy on upper surface, costae and costules scaly beneath with elongate, flat, brown scales in basal part, with pale bullate scales in distal part; texture papyraceous, deep green, paler beneath, veins forked or distal ones simple. Sori close to costules; indusia small; scales at costular side of receptacles, hidden by mature sori .

Distribution in Thailand

NORTHERN: Chiang Mai; CENTRAL: Nakhon Nayok; SOUTH-EASTERN: Chanthaburi, Trat; PENINSULAR Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Trang, Yala, Narathiwat.

Distribution in Laos

Attapeu.

Distribution in Cambodia

Kampot, Kompong Thom

Wider Distribution

Cambodia, Hainan, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo.

Ecology

On mountain slopes usually in dense tropical evergreen forest below l000 m alt.

Proposed IUCN Conservation Assessment

Least Concern (LC). Although Cyathea species are often exploited for the horticultural industry (mainly for their trunks as a base for epiphytic orchids) his species is widespread and not noticeably being adversely impacted.  Monitoring is necessary.

Notes

Fibrous trunk used for orchid media.