Pellaea atropurpurea (Linnaeus) Link. Purple Cliff-brake. Phen: Mar-Nov. Hab: Outcrops of limestone and other rocks (usually either calcareous, subcalcareous, or mafic), rarely on masonry walls (Wieboldt 1995). Dist: Widespread in e. North America, from NH, VT, NY, MN, SD, SK, and AB south to Panhandle FL, AL, TN, AR, TX, NM, AZ, Mexico, and Guatemala.

Origin/Endemic status: Native

Taxonomy Comments: This species is an apogamously-reproducing triploid, either an allopolyploid derived from the hybridization of a sexually-reproducing diploid species and sexually-reproducing tetraploid, or an autopolyploid of an undiscovered or extinct species. Gastony, Yatskievych, & Dixon (1992) provide convincing evidence that modern P. glabella is not one of the parental taxa, contrary to the suggestion by Lellinger (1985).

Synonymy: = Ar, C, ETx1, F, Fl1, FNA2, GrPl, Il, K1, K3, K4, Meso1, Mo1, NE, NY, Pa, RAB, S13, Sf, Tn, Tx, TxFerns, Va, W, WH3, WV; = Hemionitis atropurpurea (L.) Christenh. – Christenhusz, Fay, & Byng (2018); = n/a – Tat; = Pellaea ×atropurpurea; = Pellaea atropurpurea (L.) Link var. atropurpurea – G

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Heliophily: 5