E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Pellaea glabella Mett. ex Kuhn
simple cliff-brake (smooth cliffbrake)
Pteridaceae (Maidenhair Fern family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Pellaea glabella
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SUBTAXA PRESENT IN BC

Pellaea glabella ssp. occidentalis
Pellaea glabella ssp. simplex

Species Information

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Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

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.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Dry to mesic crevices of calcareous rocks in the steppe, montane, and subalpine zones; infrequent in C and SC BC; E to AB and S to NM, AZ, NV and WA.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Pellaea glabella

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	1138	1138	1138
Slope Gradient (%)	20	20	20
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	225	225	225
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	0	0	0
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	C
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	1
Modal BEC Zone Class	IDF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	IDF(1)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Status Information

Scientific Name	Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Pellaea glabella ssp. occidentalis	Native	S2?	Red	Not Listed
Pellaea glabella ssp. simplex	Native	S4S5	Yellow	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer, the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Flora North America treatment for Pteridaceae
Flora North America treatment for Pellaea glabella
Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2024-05-13 10:51:08 AM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.