#lip fern

Another ID thanks to iNaturalist. The Lip Ferns grow in warm, dry, rocky regions, often growing in small crevices high up on cliffs. or in this case on the granite slope of Sullivan Rock, which is damp in winter and baked dry in summer. Most are small, sturdy and evergreen, but more than a few are desert ferns, curling up during dry times and reviving with the return or rain or trickling groundwater. The leaves, often densely hairy, spring directly from the rootstocks.  The spore-bearing structures are protected by curled-over leaf margins.

A widespread genus with some 180 species worldwide, and 15 known from Australia. Or, at least, that’s what the taxonomy says at the moment. It turns out the genus is highly paraphyletic - in the early 21st century, many mostly New-World species were moved into the new genus Gaga and the revived genus Myriopteris, and the ones that remain in Cheilanthes will probably be split into at least 4 genera.

AKA Poison Rock Fern, Mulga Fern, Sieberi's Lip Fern, Cheilanthes erecta, Cheilanthes preissiana, Cheilanthes tenuifolia subsp. sieberi and Hemionitis sieberi. The entire Cheilanthes genus is an ungodly taxonomic mess going by genetic evidence etc, but until someone can go over them properly this species is staying in the genus.

A small fern rarely exceeding 25cm in height, widespread in Australia, New Zealand and nearby islands, and tolerant of a surprising wide range of climate, from arid areas to annual rainfall of over a meter and a half. In deserts it grows in shaded gullies.

Consumption of this fern can cause fatal health issues for sheep and cattle, especially if they eat the ferns over a prolonged period.