General:
Evergreen perennial in small clusters from a short, stout rhizome.
Leaves:
Sterile leaves the same as fertile leaves, oblong or triangular in their outline, 5-35 cm long, 2-7 cm wide, 2-pinnate towards the base, 1-pinnate in the upper part; segments leathery, smooth, with recurved margins.
Notes:
According to the recent treatment of Pellaea by Windham (1993a,b), British Columbia plants of "P. atropurpurea" are treated either as P. gastonyi or P. glabella ssp. simplex.
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Pellaea glabella var. nana (Rich.) Cody
Pellaea glabella var. occidentalis (E.E. Nelson) Butters
Pellaea occidentalis (E.E. Nelson) Rydb.
Pellaea occidentalis subsp. occidentalis
Pellaea pumila