Doryopteris is a genus of ferns in the subfamily Cheilanthoideae of the family Pteridaceae, within the order Polypodiales. The genus was described by John Smith (J.Sm.) and published in the Journal of Botany (Hooker) in 1841.
Species delimitation within Doryopteris has been unsettled. The Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World recognizes species in three groups: a core group (Doryopteris sensu stricto) supported by molecular phylogenetic studies, a second group of species left outside the strict sense by Yesilyurt et al. (2015) pending an alternative placement, and a third group of species that the same study suggested may eventually belong to a redescribed Pellaeopsis or to Hemionitis. The GBIF Backbone Taxonomy currently lists around 58 taxa under the genus.
Occurrence data compiled by GBIF show the genus is most heavily recorded in Brazil, with substantial numbers of records also from the United States, Argentina, Paraguay, Australia, Bolivia, Colombia, and South Africa, pointing to a broadly pantropical and warm-temperate distribution with its center of diversity in the Neotropics and additional representation in North America, southern Africa, and Australia.
Species placed within the genus include Doryopteris pentagona, D. concolor, D. decipiens, D. sagittifolia, D. angelica, and D. raddiana, all recognized within the Doryopteris sensu stricto group, along with the hybrid D. × procera. Doryopteris cordifolia is treated by the same source as taxonomically uncertain, potentially belonging outside Doryopteris in a redescribed Pellaeopsis or in Hemionitis.
Distribution
GBIF occurrence records for Doryopteris are heavily concentrated in Brazil, with notable additional records from the United States, Argentina, Paraguay, Australia, Bolivia, Colombia, and South Africa — a pattern consistent with a pantropical to warm-temperate genus centered in the Neotropics.
Taxonomy Notes
Generic limits within Doryopteris remain unsettled. The Checklist of Ferns and Lycophytes of the World groups species into a core Doryopteris sensu stricto supported by molecular phylogenetics, a set of additional species left outside the strict sense by Yesilyurt et al. (2015, Phytotaxa) with no confirmed alternative placement, and a further set that the same study suggested may eventually be redescribed under Pellaeopsis or transferred to Hemionitis.
