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Thelypteris kunthii (Desv.) C.V. Morton
Southern shield fern

Thelypteris kunthii
Copyright by: Keith A. Bradley

Family: Thelypteridaceae

Group: Pteridophyte

Substrate: Terrestrial

Habit: Herb

Perennation: Perennial

Native Range: Southeastern United States, the West Indies, Mexico, Central America and northern South America.

Map of select IRC data for peninsular Florida

IRC SOUTH FLORIDA Status: Secure

SOUTH FLORIDA Occurrence: Present

SOUTH FLORIDA Native Status: Native

SOUTH FLORIDA Cultivated Status: Cultivated

Comments: Visit our Natives For Your Neighborhood website for more information and images.

Other data on Thelypteris kunthii available from :

Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants
Thelypteris kunthii has been found in the following 155 conservation areas :
Occurrence Native Status
A.D. Doug Barnes Park Present Native
Alice C. Wainwright Park Present Native
Andrew Dodge Memorial Pineland Present Native
Arch Creek Addition Present Native
Arch Creek Park Present Native
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Babcock Ranch Preserve Present Native
Big and Little George Hammocks Present Native
Big Cypress National Preserve Present Native
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park Present Native
Bill Sadowski Park Present Native
Biscayne National Park Present Native
Biscayne National Park, Florida Keys Section Present Native
Black Creek Forest Present Native
Black Point Park and Marina Present Native
Bonair Beach Parcel, Martin County Present Native
Boystown Pineland Present Native
Caloosahatchee Creeks Preserve Present Native
Caloosahatchee Regional Park Present Native
Camp Owaissa Bauer Present Native
Camp Owaissa Bauer Addition Present Native
Castellow Hammock parcel 28 Present Native
Castellow Hammock parcel 31 Present Native
Castellow Hammock Park Present Native
Cayo Costa State Park Present Native
Chapman Field Park Present Native
Coconut Creek Maple Swamp Natural Area Present Native
Collier-Seminole State Park Present Native
Coral Pines Park Present Native
Coral Reef Park Present Native
Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (CREW) Present Native
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Present Native
Crandon Park Present Native
Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammocks Botanical State Park Possibly Extirpated Possibly Extirpated
Deering Estate at Cutler Present Native
Delray Oaks Natural Area Present Native
Dolphin Center and Dolphin Center Addition Present Native
Doris Davis Forman Wilderness Preserve Natural Area Present Native
Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park Present Native
Dry Tortugas National Park Present Native
Dupuis Reserve Present Native
Eachus Pineland Present Native
Enchanted Forest Park Present Native
Everglades and Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Everglades National Park Present Native
Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park Present Native
Fern Forest Nature Center Present Native
Fisheating Creek Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Florida City Pineland Present Native
Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Fred C. Babcock-Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Frenchman's Forest Natural Area Present Native
Frog Pond/L-31 N Transition Lands Present Native
Fuchs Hammock Preserve Present Native
Girl Scouts South Miami Little House Present Native
Gold Coast Railroad Museum Present Native
Goulds Pineland Present Native
Grassy Waters Preserve Present Native
Greynolds Park Present Native
Halpatiokee Regional Park Present Native
Harden Hammock Present Native
Hattie Bauer Hammock Present Native
Hawk's Hammock Park Present Native
Hickey Creek Mitigation Park Wildlife and Environmental Area Present Native
Highland Oaks Park Present Native
Hillsboro Pineland Natural Area Present Native
Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge Present Native
Holiday Hammock Present Native
Hugh Taylor Birch State Park Present Native
Ingram Pineland Present Native
J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area Present Native
John Kunkel Small Pineland Present Native
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Present Native
Jonathan Dickinson State Park Present Native
Juno Dunes Natural Area Present Native
Kendall Indian Hammocks Park Present Native
Kendalwood Present Native
LaBelle Nature Park Present Native
Lake Okeechobee Marshes Present Native
Lake Okeechobee Ridge Present Native
Larry and Penny Thompson Park Present Native
Long Key Natural Area & Nature Center Present Native
Loveland Hammock Present Native
Loxahatchee River Natural Area Present Native
Loxahatchee Slough Natural Area Present Native
Lucille Hammock Present Native
Ludlam Pineland Present Native
Luis Martinez United States Army Reserve Station, Richmond Pine Rocklands Present Native
Mangrove Preserve Present Native
Matheson Hammock Park Present Native
Medlock Pineland Present Native
Meissner Hammock Present Native
Milton E. Thompson Park Present Native
National Key Deer Refuge Present Native
Navy Wells Pineland 23 Present Native
Navy Wells Pineland 39 Native
Navy Wells Pineland Preserve Present Native
Ned Glenn Nature Preserve Present Native
Nicodemus Slough Present Native
Nixon Smiley Pineland Addition Present Native
Nixon Smiley Pineland Preserve Present Native
Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest, Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area - FWC, Okaloacoochee Slough Wildlife Management Area Present Native
Oleta River State Park Present Native
Palm Drive Pineland Present Native
Pal-Mar Present Native
Pal-Mar Natural Area Present Native
Peck Lake Park Present Native
Picayune Strand State Forest Present Native
Pine Island Ridge Natural Area Present Native
Pine Ridge Sanctuary Present Native
Pine Shore Preserve Present Native
Pond Apple Slough Natural Area Present Native
Pond Cypress Natural Area Present Native
Porter-Russell Pineland Present Native
Prairie Pines Preserve Present Native
Quail Roost Pineland Present Native
R. Hardy Matheson Preserve Present Native
Railhead Scrub Preserve Present Native
Rock Pit 34 Present Native
Rock Pit 39 Possibly Extirpated Possibly Extirpated
Rockdale Pineland Present Native
Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Present Native
Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area Present Native
School Board Property (Moody Drive and Turnpike) Native
Scrub Oak Park Present Native
Seabranch Preserve State Park Present Native
Secret Woods Nature Center Present Native
Silver Palm Groves Present Native
Silver Palm Hammock Present Native
Simpson Park Present Native
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve Present Native
SOCSOUTH Present Native
South Dade Wetlands Present Native
Southern Glades Present Native
St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park Present Native
Sunny Palms Pineland Present Native
Tall Cypress Natural Area Present Native
Tamiami Pineland Complex Addition Present Native
The Barnacle State Historic Park Present Native
Tradewinds Park & Stables Present Native
Trail Glades Range Present Native
Tree Island Park Present Native
Tree Tops Park Present Native
Trinity Pineland Present Native
Tropical Park Present Native
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens Present Native
Warbler Wetland Natural Area Present Native
West Lake Park/Anne Kolb Nature Center Present Native
Wild Turkey Strand Preserve Present Native
Woodmont Natural Area Present Native
Yamato Scrub Natural Area Present Native
Yellow Fever Creek Preserve Present Native
Zoo Miami Present Native

Thelypteris kunthii has been found in the following 9 counties :
Occurrence Native Status
Broward County Native
Charlotte County Native
Collier County Native
Lee County Native
Martin County Native
Miami-Dade County Native
Monroe County (Keys) Native
Monroe County (Mainland) Native
Palm Beach County Native

Thelypteris kunthii has been found in the following 22 habitats :
Alluvial Forest
Baygall
Bayhead
Coastal Interdunal Swale
Disturbed Upland
Disturbed Wetland
Dome Swamp
Floodplain Swamp
Freshwater Tidal Swamp
Hydric Hammock
Maritime Hammock
Marl Prairie
Mesic Flatwoods
Mesic Hammock
Pine Rockland
Prairie Hammock
Rockland Hammock
Scrubby Flatwoods
Shell Mound
Sinkhole
Strand Swamp
Wet Prairie

All Images:

Thelypteris kunthii
Copyright by: Keith A. Bradley
Thelypteris kunthii
Copyright by: George D. Gann