Bastard Catclaw vs Clinging Snakefern

Microgramma lycopodioides compared with Microgramma heterophylla

Key Differences

• Bastard Catclaw is Not Evaluated while Clinging Snakefern is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bastard Catclaw	Clinging Snakefern
Kingdom same	Plantae (พืช)	Plantae (พืช)
Phylum same	Tracheophyta	Tracheophyta
Class same	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)
Order same	Polypodiales (Polypodiales)	Polypodiales (Polypodiales)
Family same	Polypodiaceae	Polypodiaceae
Genus same	Microgramma	Microgramma
Species	Microgramma lycopodioides	Microgramma heterophylla

Evolutionary Relationship

Bastard Catclaw and Clinging Snakefern share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Microgramma.

Conservation Status

Bastard Catclaw

NE — Not Evaluated

Clinging Snakefern

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bastard Catclaw	Clinging Snakefern
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bastard Catclaw

Habitat

Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Colombia, and Cuba.

Clinging Snakefern

Habitat

Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies.

Range

Found in Cuba.

Bastard Catclaw

The Bastard Catclaw (Microgramma lycopodioides) is a species in the genus Microgramma. Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies. Its range includes Brazil, Colombia, and Cuba.

Clinging Snakefern

Clinging Snakefern, Microgramma species, is a genus of small epiphytic ferns in the family Polypodiaceae found in tropical and subtropical forests of the Americas, from Florida and the Caribbean through Central America to South America. The ferns cling tightly to tree bark and rock surfaces using creeping rhizomes with specialized clinging scales, making them true epiphytes that depend entirely on the host surface for physical support while deriving all their water and nutrients from rainfall and atmospheric deposition. The common name 'snakefern' refers to the slender, creeping rhizomes that resemble snakes threading through moss and bark. The fronds are small and simple, either entirely fertile bearing sori on their undersurface or sterile with entire margins. Clinging snakeferns contribute to the high epiphyte diversity of tropical forest canopies and are important components of the moss-and-lichen matrix on tree trunks in humid forests. They are sensitive to moisture availability and desiccation and are among the first species to decline when humid forest is cleared or fragmented. Several Microgramma species are used as ornamental plants in warm-climate gardens for their ability to creep over rocks and tree stumps. Conservation status varies by species within the genus.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇨🇺 Cuba