Lecanopteris sinuosa is myrmecophyte or “ant-plant”. Ants reside in a hollow chamber within the rhizome, seen here in the cross section photographs. The relationship is often described as mutualistic because it benefits both the ants and the plant. The plant provides a secure nest site for the ants. The ants provide the plant with protection from herbivores. Their discarded refuse which accumulates in older parts of the rhizome also act as fertilizer for the plant. Lecanopteris sinuosa is a lowland species found throughout Malesia. I found this individual plant on an old palm frond which fell out of the canopy that day after an intnese rainstorm.
Asplenium lindenii
This is a black-stemmed twice-pinnate Asplenium with a proliferous flagelliform leaf tip. Plants like this have generally been treated as A. flabellulatum Kunze in neotropical floras, but that name does not appear to be correctly applied here. The leaf cutting of this...









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