About Pellaea mucronata (D.C.Eaton) D.C.Eaton
Pellaea mucronata (D.C.Eaton) D.C.Eaton is a fern species commonly called bird's foot cliffbrake. It is native to most of California, plus parts of Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and Baja California, where it grows in a variety of rocky habitat types. The subspecies Pellaea mucronata subsp. californica is restricted to California, while Pellaea mucronata subsp. mucronata can be found outside of California's borders. Each individual leaf is between 7 and 45 centimeters long, and grows from a thin petiole. The leaf structure includes a thin, straight, brown rachis lined with widely spaced leaflets. These leaflets are divided into small narrow terminal segments, and these terminal segments may sometimes be further subdivided into an additional set of smaller segments. The smallest segments are up to around one centimeter long, and range in color from green to dark purplish. Their edges may roll under, and the sporangia are located under these rolled edges.
