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Japanese Royal Fern🌿
Osmunda japonica
ゼンマイ
A fern growing on moist slopes and waterside areas in mountain regions. The young fiddleheads (zenmai) that emerge in spring are a well-known edible wild vegetable. The vegetative fronds (trophophylls) and fertile fronds (sporophylls) are separate, with the fertile fronds turning conspicuous brown.
Identification Points
- ✓Young fronds unfurl from tightly coiled fiddleheads
- ✓Young shoots are covered in woolly hairs
- ✓Vegetative fronds and fertile fronds (brown) are separate
- ✓Large fern (60 cm to 1 m)
Habitat
Mountains, moist forest edges, stream valleys, waterside areas
Season
April to May (young fiddleheads)
3D Specimen Model
Kyushu University, Shikano Lab (CC0)
View on Sketchfab→Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Compound
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf shape
Ovate
Growth form
Herb
Habitat
Wetland
Phylogenetic Positionゼンマイ科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Vascular plants > Ferns > Osmundales > Osmundaceae
Divergence Era
Triassic (approx. 250 million years ago onward)
Evolution Notes
Osmundaceae is one of the oldest fern families, with a fossil record extending back to the Triassic Period.
View on evolution timeline →Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification