Adiantum capillus-veneris

Adiantum capillus-veneris L., Sp. Pl. 2: 1096 1753. (Syn: Adiantum africanum R. Br.; Adiantum capillus Sw.; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. capillus-veneris ; Adiantum capillus-veneris f. dissectum (M. Martens & Galeotti) Ching; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. fissum Christ; Adiantum capillus-veneris f. fissum (Christ) Ching; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. laciniatum Christ ex Tardieu & C. Chr.; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. modestum (Underw.) Fernald; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. protrusum Fernald; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. rimicola (Sloss.) Fernald; Adiantum capillus-veneris var. trifidum Christ; Adiantum coriandrifolium Lam.; Adiantum fontanum Salisb.; Adiantum formosum R. Br.; Adiantum michelii Christ; Adiantum modestum Underw.; Adiantum paradiseae Baker; Adiantum pseudocapillus Fée; Adiantum remyanum Esp. Bustos; Adiantum schaffneri E. Fourn.; Adiantum tenerum var. dissectum M. Martens & Galeotti; Adiantum trifidum Willd. ex Bolle);

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Cosmopolitan: Afghanistan, Alabama, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Arizona, Arkansas, Assam, Azores, Bahamas, Baleares, Bangladesh, Belize, Botswana, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, British Columbia, Bulgaria, California, Cambodia, Canary Is., Cape Provinces, Cape Verde, Chad, Chile Central, Chile North, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Colorado, Comoros, Corse, Cuba, Cyprus, Djibouti, East Himalaya, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Florida, France, Free State, Georgia, Great Britain, Greece, Guatemala, Gulf States, Haiti, Hawaii, Honduras, India, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kentucky, Kenya, Korea, Kriti, Krym, KwaZulu-Natal, Laos, Lebanon-Syria, Lesotho, Lesser Sunda Is., Libya, Louisiana, Madagascar, Madeira, Malawi, Malaya, Mali, Maryland, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico Central, Mexico Gulf, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southeast, Mexico Southwest, Mississippi, Missouri, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nansei-shoto, Nepal, Nevada, New Caledonia, New Mexico, New South Wales, New York, Niger, Nigeria, North Carolina, North Caucasus, Northern Territory, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Queensland, Rodrigues, Réunion, Samoa, Sardegna, Saudi Arabia, Sicilia, Sinai, Society Is., Socotra, Somalia, South Australia, South Carolina, South Dakota, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tadzhikistan, Taiwan, Tanzania, Tennessee, Texas, Thailand, Tibet, Tonga, Transcaucasus, Trinidad-Tobago, Tubuai Is., Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Uganda, Utah, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Victoria, Vietnam, Virginia, West Himalaya, Western Australia, Windward Is., Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe as per POWO;
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Adiantum capillus-veneris, the Southern maidenhair fern, black maidenhair fern, and venus hair fern, is a species of ferns in the genus Adiantum with a subcosmopolitan worldwide distribution. It is cultivated as a popular garden fern and houseplant.^[2]
Adiantum capillus-veneris is native to the southern half of the United States from California to the Atlantic coast, through Mexico and Central America, to South America. It is also native to Eurasia, the Levant in Western Asia, and Australasia.^[2][3][4] There are two disjunct occurrences in the northern part of North America: at Cascade Springs in the Black Hills of South Dakota and Fairmont Hot Springs, British Columbia. In both instances, the warm microclimate created by hot mineral springs permits the growth of the plant far north of its normal range.
It is found in temperate climates from warm-temperate to tropical, where the moisture content is high but not saturating, in the moist, well-drained sand, loam or limestone many habitats, including rainforests, shrub and woodlands, broadleaf and coniferous forests, and desert cliff seeps, and springs. It often may be seen growing on moist, sheltered and shaded sandstone or limestone formations, generally south-facing in the southern hemisphere, north-facing in the north, or in gorges.^[2] It occurs throughout Africa in moist places by streams.^[5] On moist sandstone cliffs it grows in full or partial shade, even when unprotected.^[6]
Adiantum capillus-veneris grows from 6 to 12 in (15 to 30 cm) in height; its fronds arising in clusters from creeping rhizomes 8 to 27.5 in (20 to 70 cm) tall, with very delicate, light green fronds much subdivided into pinnae 0.2 to 0.4 in (5 to 10 mm) long and broad; the frond rachis is black and wiry.^[2][4]
Adiantum capillus-veneris is cultivated and widely available around the world for planting in natural landscape native plants and traditional shade gardens, for outdoor container gardens, and commonly as an indoor houseplant.
This plant is used medicinally by Native Americans. The Mahuna people use the plant internally for rheumatism,^[7] and the Kayenta Navajo use an infusion of the plant as a lotion for bumblebee and centipede stings.^[8] The Kayenta also smoke it or take it internally for insanity.^[8]
(From Wikipedia on 16.11.14)
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Adiantum capillus-veneris :

Adiantum tibeticum:

Adiantum capillus-veneris/ABDEC26 : 4 posts by 3 authors. Attachments (7)

I found this today and am posting it to clear the earlier confusion about its identity. This one is also called the Maidens Hair Fern. The leaves are multi-lobed (as opposed to the Adiantum tibeticum) with sori attached to each lobe. The edges are less serrated than the tibeticum and veins are more delineated too. I am putting both together for a clear appreciation of the differences

Adiantum capillus-veneris ABJUL01/10 : 1 post by 1 author. 3 images.

I found the fresh and the mature sori on this Adiantum this morning and took some photos.

The rhizome is here too.

13 July 2015.
Please correct me if I am wrong.

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ANSEPT11/11 Fern for identification : 5 posts by 2 authors. Attachments (6)

Date: August 2015
Place: Bangalore, Karnataka

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adiantum capillus-veneris

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This is Adiantum capillus-veneris – you can see the black colour of the stalk extending a little way along the margins into the laminar segment (unlike the genrally similar A. tenerum). Depth of lobing is not of importance in A. capillus-veneris as it is entirely variable.

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References:
The Plant List Ver.1.1  India Biodiversity Portal  Wikipedia