Thelypteris kingii C.F.Reed (1969:465)
Taxonomy & Nomenclature
Synonym/s: Stegnogramma leptogrammoides K.Iwats. in Acta Phytotax. Geobot. 19: 119 (1963); Leptogramma leptogrammoides (K.Iwats.) Y.H.Chang & L.Y.Kuo in Cladistics 36: 178 (2019)
The binomial Thelypteris kingii was an intended replacement name for Stegnogramma leptogrammoides K.Iwats. (1963) by Reed (1969) as he wanted to place S. leptogrammoides into Thelypteris but couldn't due to the earlier T. leptogrammoides (Rosenst) C.F. Reed (1968) rendering it a junior homonym. When treated under the genus Thelypteris as it is here for now, T. kingii is the correct binomial (Fraser-Jenkins, 2012; Kholia, 2013; POWO, 2023). But its generic assignation is disputed, with the species being treated under Stegnogramma (Luo et al., 2018) or Leptogramma (Kuo et al., 2020 (comb. nov.); Hassler, 2004-2023) in recent literature as well.
Conservation Status
Last record: unclear, either May 1885 or much later (Kholia, 2013:45)
Rediscovered on 15 December 2011 (Kholia, 2013) (or earlier), or, invalid (synonym of Leptogramma leptogrammoides) (Hassler, 2004-2023; Luo et al., 2018; Kuo et al., 2020)
Kholia (2013:47) reports that the species was recently reported from Uttarakhand by botanist Christopher Fraser-Jenkins, but Fraser-Jenkins (2012:170) later states that the species is endemic to Sikkim which is also the only state from which (Kholia, 2013) reports the species as well. Kholia (2013:45) reports Fraser-Jenkins as examining herbarium material other than the type specimen collected in unrecorded (viz. genuinely no data) and unspecified (viz. not stated in the paper) years from Sikkim, but reports the rediscovery of the species in Sikkim and therefore is best treated as a global rediscovery rather than a local one.
Distribution
Sikkim, India & Yunnan Province, China
Type locality: "an unspecified locality in what was then "British Sikkim", now Darjeeling District, India" (as T. kingii) (Kholia, 2013:44), or, "INDIA. Sikkim" (as S./L. leptogrammoides) (Luo et al., 2018:86; Kuo et al., 2020)
Kholia (2013:44) states that the type collection of T. kingii was made in Darjeeling District (in West Bengal), and that botanist Christopher Fraser-Jenkins had recently found the species in Uttarakhand, but the species was listed as endemic to Sikkim by (Fraser-Jenkins, 2012:170). Although known only from India, Fraser-Jenkins (1997,2008a,2008b,2012) expected the species to probably occur in China & Tibet, and it was subsequently reported from Dulongjiang village, Gongshan county, Yunnan Province, China by (Luo et al., 2018).
Biology & Ecology
Hypodigm
Media
References
Original scientific description:
Reed, C. F. (1969). Index Thelypteridis Supplement 1. Phytologia 17: 465-466.
Other references:
Chandra, S. (2000). The ferns of India (Enumeration, Synonyms & Distribution).International Book Distributors, Dehra Dun, India. pp. i-xi, 1-459.
Dixit, R. D. (1984). A Census of Indian Pteridophytes. Botanical Survey of India, Howrah, India. pp. 1-177.
Ebihara, Atsushi, Fraser-Jenkins, Christopher Roy, Parris, Barbara S., Zhang, Xian-Chun, Yang, Yue-Hong, Chiou, Wen-Liang, Chang, Ho-Ming, Lindsay, Stuart, Middleton, David, Kato, Masahiro, Praptosuwiryo, Titien Ngatinem, Amoroso, Victor B., Barcelona, Julie F., Ranil, Rajapaksha Haddokara Gedara, Park, Chan-Ho, Murakami, Noriaki and Hoya, Akihiko (2012). Rare and Threatened Pteridophytes of Asia 1. An Enumeration of Narrowly Distributed Taxa. Bulletin of the National Museum of Nature and Science, Series B. 38(3): 93-119.
Fraser-Jenkins, Christopher Roy. (1997). New Species Syndrome in Indian Pteridology and the ferns of Nepal. International Book Distributors, Dehra Dun, India. pp. i-v, 1-403.
Fraser-Jenkins, Christopher Roy. (2008a). Endemics and Pseudo-Endemics in Relation to the Distribution Patterns of Indian Pteridophytes. Taiwania 53: 264-292.
Fraser-Jenkins, Christopher Roy. (2008b). Taxonomic revision of three hundred Indian Subcontinental Pteridophytes with a revised census list. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehra Dun, India. pp. 1-685.
Fraser-Jenkins, Christopher Roy. (2012). Rare and threatened Pteridophytes of Asia 2. Endangered species of India-the Higher IUCN Categories. Bulletin of the Natural Museum of Nature and Science. Series B, Botany 38(4): 153-181.
Hassler, Michael. (2004-2023). World Ferns. Synonymic Checklist and Distribution of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World. Version 17.2; last update Oct. 20th, 2023. Available at: https://www.worldplants.de/ferns/ [Accessed 4 November 2023]
Iwatsuki, K. (1963). Taxonomic studies of Pteridophyta VII. A revision of the genus Stegnogramma emend. Act. Phytotax. Geobot. 19: 112-126.
Kholia, B. S. (2013). A Note on the Re-collection and Conservation of Thelypteris kingii (Thelypteridaceae) – an Endemic Fern of India. Taiwania 58(1): 44-48.
Kuo, Li-Yang, Chang, Yi-Hang, Huang, Yu-Hsuan, Testo, Weston, Ebihara, Atsushi, Rouhan, Germinal, Quintanilla, Luis G., Watkins, James E., Jnr., Huang, Yao-Moan and Li, Fay-Wei. (2020). A global phylogeny of Stegnogramma ferns (Thelypteridaceae): generic and sectional revision, historical biogeography and evolution of leaf architecture. Cladistics 36(2): 164-183. https://doi.org/10.1111/cla.12399
Luo, Jun-Jie, Mo, Rigengaowa, Wei, Hong-Jin, Dai, Xi-Ling, Yan, Yue-Hong and Shang, Hui. (2018). Stegnogramma leptogrammoides (Thelypteridaceae), its discovery in China, and synonymy. Phytotaxa 376(2): 81-88. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.376.2.1
POWO. (2023). Thelypteris kingii C.F.Reed. Plants of the World Online (online resource). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, United Kingdom. Available at: https://powo.science.kew.org/ [Accessed 29 October 2023]
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