Sticherus tener
Sticherus tener, commonly known as the silky fan-fern, is a tall ground fern in the family Gleicheniaceae. It grows in damp rainforest areas along watercourses and drainage lines, especially where Nothofagus cunninghamii is common.
Distribution: In Australia, it occurs in Tasmania and Victoria. In New Zealand, it is found in two separate areas on the South Island: Stockton and Denniston Plateaus near Westport, and around Resolution and Anchor Islands and Mount Hodges in Fiordland. Some older records from New South Wales and Queensland need verification.
Description: It forms large, bushy clumps that can exceed 2 meters tall. It has creeping dark brown rhizomes up to 2 meters long. Fronds are bright green, 20–38 cm tall, and consist of repeatedly forked branches that give a fan- or umbrella-like look. Stipes (the stalks) arise along the rhizome and are black at the base, turning green toward the top, up to about 90 cm long. Pinnae (segments) are fan-shaped, about 9–19 cm long and 4.5–26 cm wide, with a pair of main branches at the tip and further divisions up to four times, ending in many small ultimate segments. The small side branches have brown scales on the underside; the bottom of the ultimate segments may have pale brown hairs, which can disappear with age. Sori occur in a single row along the midvein of each segment and contain sporangia.
Distinctive features: Segments on the ultimate branches arise at near right angles to the midrib. The underside of the minor rachis has narrow brown scales, and the underside of the ultimate segments is sparsely hairy or hairless with age.
Name: Sticherus comes from a Greek word meaning “in rows” (referring to the arrangement of sori). Tener means soft or delicate, pointing to the soft fronds. The common name Silky Fan Fern reflects its soft texture and fan-shaped fronds.
Taxonomy: Sticherus tener was described in studies of southeast Australian Sticherus species and distinguished from S. urceolatus.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 20:18 (CET).