ASPLENIUM CIMMERIORUM, A NEW FERN SPECIES FROM NEW-ZEALAND

Asplenium cimmeriorum sp. nov. is described from the Waitomo district in the North Island and from the Oparara Valley and north Westland in the South Island. It is an octoploid species which grows in lowland si tes on calcareous substrates in high rainfall areas. In the North Isla nd it is largely confined to cave entrances and limestone walls, favou ring sites of very low light intensity. In the South Island it extends also into forest, growing on rotting logs, roots, and rock. It is mor phologically close to both Asplenium hookerianum and A. bulbiferum sub sp. gracillimum, and is known to hybridise with A. bulbiferum. It is s uggested that it may be an allopolyploid species with A. hookerianum a s one parent. Asplenium hookerianum is apparently absent from the regi ons now occupied by A. cimmeriorum, and may have been displaced by a s pecies better adapted to high rainfall and low light habitats on calca reous soils. The conservation status of A. cimmeriorum is discussed an d it is recommended for classification as a ''local'' species.