Ostrich Fern

Matteuccia struthiopteris

The Ostrich Fern has tall, feathery fronds that look like the feathers of an ostrich. It loves damp, shady spots and can grow in big groups, creating a lush green carpet in forests and wetlands.

Habitat: Forests, Wetlands

Appearance

The Ostrich Fern is a large, stately fern with two distinct types of fronds. Its tall, vase-shaped green sterile fronds are deeply cut, resembling ostrich plumes. Shorter, dark brown fertile fronds emerge later, holding the spores.

KingdomPlantaePhylumTracheophytaClassPolypodiopsidaOrderPolypodialesFamilyOnocleaceaeGenusMatteuccia

Ostrich Fern

Interesting facts

Ostrich Ferns are ancient plants, thriving since the time of the dinosaurs!

The young, coiled fronds are called "fiddleheads" because they look like violin scrolls.

Their fertile fronds look like they're wearing tiny, spore-filled helmets all winter.

Unlike flowering plants, ferns reproduce using tiny, dust-like spores carried by the wind!

Special abilities

Ostrich Fern releases tiny spores that can travel far on the wind to grow new ferns in distant places.

Ostrich Fern grows edible young fronds (fiddleheads) in spring, providing a tasty early-season food.

Ostrich Fern spreads underground using rhizomes, allowing it to form large colonies and claim more space.

Measurements & details

Height: 30-170 cm
Spread: 60-90 cm
Edible: Yes
Toxicity: None
Lifecycle: Perennial

Ecological connections

eats

Humans

Homo sapiens

Fiddleheads are harvested as a seasonal delicacy.

eaten by

White-tailed deer

Odocoileus virginianus

Young fiddleheads are occasionally browsed.

eaten by

Moose

Alces alces

Mature fronds provide forage in some regions.

shelters

Red-backed salamander

Plethodon cinereus

Moist undergrowth offers refuge from predators.

Traits

Deciduous

Deciduous plants periodically shed all their leaves, typically during autumn or dry seasons.

Fronded

Fronded plants possess large, divided leaves, characteristic of ferns and certain palms.

Shade Tolerant

Shade tolerant plants are adapted to grow and thrive in areas with low light levels, requiring less direct sunlight.

Edible

Edible plants are those parts of a plant that are considered safe for human consumption.

Rapid Growing

Rapid growing plants exhibit accelerated growth rates, quickly increasing in size and biomass within a short period.

Ancient Lineage

This trait signifies organisms belonging to a very old evolutionary group with ancestors dating back millions of years.

Forest

Forest habitats are terrestrial environments dominated by dense tree cover, supporting a high diversity of plant and animal life.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.