Adiantum hispidulumSw.

rough maidenhair

WFO wfo-0001107915 Accepted WFO 2026-06 8 photographs CC BY / CC BY-SA

Plate 1 figs. a–h · 8 separate observations

Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by naturewatchwidow
fig. a naturewatchwidow, CC BY 4.0 / 2022-06-11 / obs. 205070803
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Greg Tasney
fig. b Greg Tasney, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 203453302
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Steve Fitzgerald
fig. c Steve Fitzgerald, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 203115176
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Kevin Faccenda
fig. d Kevin Faccenda, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 204034823
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Lexi Amico
fig. e Lexi Amico, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 204560700
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Greg Tasney
fig. f Greg Tasney, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 199079983
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Greg Tasney
fig. g Greg Tasney, CC BY-SA 4.0 / obs. 198595554
Adiantum hispidulum, photographed by Tyler Bishop
fig. h Tyler Bishop, CC BY 4.0 / obs. 198217252

Every figure is a research-grade observation under CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA, rehosted with the photographer’s name, the licence and the observation it came from. Photographs under a NonCommercial licence are excluded from this site and are never stored, which costs us a great many pictures and is not negotiable.

Native range 40 botanical countries

Regions where Adiantum hispidulum is native: Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Northern Provinces, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, China South-Central, China Southeast, Taiwan, India, Jawa, Lesser Sunda Is., Malaya, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Thailand, Chatham Is., Kermadec Is., New South Wales, New Zealand North, Norfolk Is., Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia, Caroline Is., Cook Is., Fiji, New Caledonia, Society Is., Tonga, Tuamotu, Tubuai Is., Vanuatu EthiopiaKenyaMadagascarMalawiMozambiqueNorthern ProvincesTanzaniaZimbabweChina South-CentralChina SoutheastTaiwanIndiaJawaLesser Sunda Is.MalayaMyanmarPhilippinesSri LankaSulawesiThailandNew South WalesNew Zealand NorthNorthern TerritoryQueenslandSouth AustraliaVictoriaWestern AustraliaFijiNew Caledonia ComorosChatham Is.Kermadec Is.Norfolk Is.Caroline Is.Cook Is.Society Is.TongaTuamotuTubuai Is.Vanuatu
Native distribution of Adiantum hispidulum, after Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Introduced, extinct and doubtful records are excluded, so this is where the plant is from, not everywhere it now grows. Regions too small to draw at this scale are marked with a dot.
RegionTDWG codeContinent
Chatham Is. CTM AUSTRALASIA
Kermadec Is. KER
New South Wales NSW
New Zealand North NZN
Norfolk Is. NFK
Northern Territory NTA
Queensland QLD
South Australia SOA
Victoria VIC
Western Australia WAU
Comoros COM AFRICA
Ethiopia ETH
Kenya KEN
Madagascar MDG
Malawi MLW
Mozambique MOZ
Northern Provinces TVL
Tanzania TAN
Zimbabwe ZIM
India IND ASIA-TROPICAL
Jawa JAW
Lesser Sunda Is. LSI
Malaya MLY
Myanmar MYA
Philippines PHI
Sri Lanka SRL
Sulawesi SUL
Thailand THA
Caroline Is. CRL PACIFIC
Cook Is. COO
Fiji FIJ
New Caledonia NWC
Society Is. SCI
Tonga TON
Tuamotu TUA
Tubuai Is. TUB
Vanuatu VAN
China South-Central CHC ASIA-TEMPERATE
China Southeast CHS
Taiwan TAI

Region boundaries approximated from Natural Earth (public domain) and mapped to TDWG World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD) level-3 botanical countries (Brummitt 2001). Indicative, not the official WGSRPD geometry.

Also published as 19 synonyms

A synonym is not an error. It is a record of botanists disagreeing, in print, about where this plant belongs. Each of these was somebody’s considered answer.

  • Adiantum flabellulatum Wall.
  • Adiantum hispidulum f. strictum Gilbert
  • Adiantum hispidulum var. glabratum Domin
  • Adiantum hispidulum var. normale Domin
  • Adiantum hispidulum var. tenellum (T.Moore) T.Moore
  • Adiantum lindsaea Cav.
  • Adiantum lobatum Ettingsh.
  • Adiantum lobulatum Kunze
  • Adiantum meyerianum Zoll.
  • Adiantum nervosum Sw.
  • Adiantum pedatum G.Forst.
  • Adiantum plicatum Kaulf.
  • Adiantum pubescens Schkuhr
  • Adiantum scabrum Wall.
  • Adiantum tenellum T.Moore
  • Adiantum tenue Domin
  • Adiantum tenue var. bicolor Domin
  • Adiantum tenue var. caudiforme Domin
  • Adiantum whitei F.M.Bailey

Sourcesevery claim on this page

  1. World Flora Online Plant List. accepted name, authority, classification. CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-12.
  2. iNaturalist. photographs and flowering annotations, CC0 / CC BY / CC BY-SA only. per photograph. Retrieved 2026-06-27.
  3. Wikidata. common name (P1843), joined on the World Flora Online identifier (P7715). CC0. Retrieved 2026-07-13.
  4. Kew, World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP v16). native distribution by TDWG level-3 botanical country, and life form. CC BY 3.0. Retrieved 2026-06-04.

We publish what we can source and we say so when we cannot. This page has no care advice and no toxicity claim, because we do not yet have those from a source we can cite.