Botrychium dissectum

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 4:03 pm

Have you ever seen a finer looking sorus? Never seen one of these until today, found it in the backyard growing beneath a tulip poplar.

Botrychium dissectum
EOS 30D
Manual Mode/hand held
1/200 sec. @ f/7.1 ISO 100
Canon 430EX ETTL off camera w/bracket @ -1/3
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Late afternoon in shade

JoanYoung · Post by **JoanYoung** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 5:30 pm

Ken, I am much too dumb about these things to comment on this, but I always thought sorus were the seed-like things behind a fern frond? I have never seen anything which looks like these.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 5:50 pm

This is a fern that is native to the Carolina foothills and probably elsewhere too, that being so, making it cosmopolitain. You are correct, the sorus or sori do appear behind the leaves of most ferns such as the Chirstmas fern for example, which grows profusely around my home. I found this quite by accident today but it was quite evident that I had found a type of fern from just the presence of the sori alone atop the stem. A quick look at my field guides and a search on the net turned up the identification. There are also a few other species of fern that propogate in the same manner.

Thanks Joan

JoanYoung · Post by **JoanYoung** » Sat Nov 03, 2007 6:01 pm

Thanks Ken for this information. I know almost nothing about plants, fungi etc. so it is interesting to learn some more from people like you who post pics here.

Bruce Williams · Post by **Bruce Williams** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 2:59 am

For one moment there I thought we were looking at a strand of DNA double helix. Would have been quite an achievement with a 30D eh

Well sorus is a new term for me so I'll be Googling straight after this posting.

Bruce

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 1:32 pm

Pretty cool looking Ken. You should do a follow-up on it as it changes. I would assume that it will release spores soon. Great use of the inset.

Mike B in OKlahoma · Post by **Mike B in OKlahoma** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 1:36 pm

When I saw "dissectum" I was prepared for something grisly! Good show, Ken.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 3:32 pm

It does have a wierd name and looks even more wierd with all that sporangia sticking up in the air above the leaves, first time I have ever noticed these things in the backyard.

Thanks guys