Asplenium oblongifolium
Common names
huruhuruwhenua, shining spleenwort
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Ferns
Detailed description
Rhizome stout, often forming a hard woody mass above ground, bearing pale brown, shiny, ovate, acuminate scales up to 30 × 7 mm. Stipes 80–200 mm long, dark brown, stout, densely covered in narrow scales with very long filiform apices. Laminae oblong to elliptic, 180 mm – 1 m × 100–350 mm wide, dark green and glossy above, pinnate. Rachis brown below, green above, stout, slightly ridged, scaly. Pinnae 4–15 pairs, lanceolate to narrowly oblong or ovate, acuminate, crenate-serrate to ± entire, cuneate at base, 40–150 × 10–30 mm, frequently covered in very small hair-like scales on the underside. Sori up to 20 mm long, not reaching lamina edge.
Similar taxa
Often confused with Asplenium obtusatum G.Forst. for which it is distinguished by the rachis and foliar scales which have very long hair-like apices, and by the pinnae which are firm (usually not thick and fleshy), glossy above, and acuminate to ± acute. Some forms of A. oblongifolium found on rock stacks along the west coast of the North Island (from about Kawhia south) would repay further investigation was these have distinctly dull, rather coriaceous, fleshy, fronds, and broader rachis and foliar scales, thus intergrading somewhat with A. obtusatum. These features are retained in cultivation.
Distribution
Endemic. New Zealand: Kermadec Islands, Manawatāwhi / Three Kings Islands, North Island, South Island (Marlborough sounds south to Hokitika and Banks Peninsula), and Chatham Islands.
Habitat
Coastal to montane (but mostly found within coastal and lowland areas). Occupying a diverse range of habitats from coastal cliffs and rock stacks to deep forest where it may be an epiphyte or grow on the ground.
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | Not Threatened
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Synonyms
Asplenium lucidum G.Forst.; Asplenium lucidum var. paucifolium Hook.; Asplenium obtusatum var. integrifolium Szyszyl. in Wawra; Asplenium obtusatum var. lucidum (G.Forst.) Hook. et Baker; Asplenium durvillei Mett. in Kuhn; Tarachia lucida (G.Forst.) Momose
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Life cycle and dispersal
Minute spores are wind dispersed (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Easily grown though often rather slow to establish. An attractive and popular plant widely used for mass plantings in shaded sites. An excellent pot plant. Be vigilant for scale and mealy bug infestations which are a bane to the cultivation of all New Zealand asplenia.
Wetland plant indicator status rating
Information derived from the revised national wetland plant list prepared to assist councils in delineating and monitoring wetlands (Clarkson et al., 2021 Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Contract Report LC3975 for Hawke’s Bay Regional Council). The national plant list categorises plants by the extent to which they are found in wetlands and not ‘drylands’. The indicator status ratings are OBL (obligate wetland), FACW (facultative wetland), FAC (facultative), FACU (facultative upland), and UPL (obligate upland). If you have suggestions for the Wetland Indicator Status Rating, please contact: [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]
UPL: Obligate Upland
Rarely is a hydrophyte, almost always in uplands (non-wetlands).
Other information
Cultivation
Commonly available from plant and specialist native plant nurseries.
Etymology
asplenium: From the Greek a- ‘without’ and splene ‘spleen’, a northern hemisphere species, the black spleenwort (Asplenium adiantum-nigrum), was once believed to be a cure for diseases of the spleen.
oblongifolium: Oblong leaves
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
ASPOBL
Chromosome number
2n = 144
Previous conservation statuses
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2017 | Not Threatened
2012 | Not Threatened
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Regional conservation statuses
Otago: 2024 | Threatened – Regionally Critical | Qualifiers: DPR, DPS, DPT, NR, Sp
The regional threat classification system leverages off the national assessments in the NZTCS, providing information relevant for the regional context. Otago conservation status information is sourced from the “Regional conservation status of indigenous vascular plants in Otago” Jarvie S et al. (2024) report.
Auckland: 2025 | Regionally Not Threatened | Qualifiers: DPS, DPT
The regional threat classification system leverages off the national assessments in the NZTCS, providing information relevant for the regional context. Auckland conservation status information is sourced from the “Conservation status of vascular plant species in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland” Simpkins E et al. (2025) report.
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Brownsey PJ. 1977. A taxonomic revision of the New Zealand species of Asplenium. New Zealand Journal of Botany 15(1): 39–86. https://doi.org/10.1080/0028825X.1977.10429618.
Thorsen MJ, Dickinson KJM, Seddon PJ. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285–309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ppees.2009.06.001.
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared for NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 29 August 2007. Description from Brownsey (1977).
NZPCN Fact Sheet citation
Please cite as: de Lange, P.J. (Year at time of access): Asplenium oblongifolium Fact Sheet (content continuously updated). New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. https://www.nzpcn.org.nz/flora/species/asplenium-oblongifolium/ (Date website was queried)