Species · genus Microsorum · Polypodiaceae

Climbing Bird's Nest Fern

Microsorum punctatum (L.) Copel.

Also known as: Elkhorn Fern · Fishtail Fern · Fishtail Strap-fern · Strapleaf Fern

Growth habit

lithophyte or epiphyte

Native range

Andaman Is., Angola, Assam, Bangladesh, Bismarck Archipelago, Borneo, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Provinces, Caroline Is., Central African Republic, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Christmas I., Comoros, DR Congo, East Himalaya, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Gulf of Guinea Is., Hainan, India, Ivory Coast, Jawa, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Laos, Lesser Sunda Is., Liberia, Madagascar, Malaya, Maluku, Marianas, Marquesas, Mauritius, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, New Caledonia, New Guinea, New South Wales, Nicobar Is., Nigeria, Northern Provinces, Philippines, Queensland, Rwanda, Réunion, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Society Is., Solomon Is., Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Reference · M. punctatum

Cultivars of M. punctatum

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under M. punctatum yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Microsorum punctatum is a tropical fern that grows on rocks and tree bark across its wide pantropical range, so its roots want airflow and fast drainage rather than sitting in soggy mix. Plant it in a loose, bark-based or epiphytic medium and water when the top inch of mix has just dried, then let excess drain freely. As a forest epiphyte it favours bright indirect light and steady warmth, and it appreciates above-average humidity.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 10 days

Humidity

High

Temperature

16–29 °C

Soil mix

Loose, bark-based epiphytic mix that stays airy

Propagation

Division of the creeping rhizome

Fertilizing

Dilute balanced feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Non-flowering fern, reproduces by spores

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Not yet documented

This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 5-10d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Climbing Bird's Nest Fern yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.