Selaginella kraussiana
NPPA pest plant
Environmental Weed (2024)
Common names
Selaginella, African clubmoss
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Lycophytes (clubmosses, selaginella, quillworts)
Flower colours
No flowers
Detailed description
Small, carpet-forming groundcover. Roots long, fine. Stems creeping, slender, irregularly branched, rooting at nodes, forming loose mat. Leaves in rows, 2-4 mm. Spore cones rounded, 10 mm long.
Similar taxa
Superficially similar to many native mosses and leafy liverworts. It is actually a fern-ally that bears small cones underneath the leaves.
Habitat
Terrestrial. A lowland plant of sites with moderate fertility. Occurs mainly in damp, shaded sites eg tall forest, low forest, scrub, forest margins and streambanks.
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Ecology
Flowering
N/A
Year naturalised
1919
Origin
C&S Africa
Reason for introduction
Ornamental.
Tolerances
The plant is intolerant to drought and tolerant to shade and poor drainage. Resprouts after physical damage.
Life cycle and dispersal
Perennial. The plant has an eternal life span as it just keeps growing. Spores are dispersed by wind, boots, feet, stock and machinery. Stem fragments can be dispersed by soil and water movement as well as human activities.
Propagation technique
Spores are thought to be viable for more than a year (Carol West, pers. comm.). Reproduces sexually by releasing spores. Also reproduces vegetatively by creeping stems with adventitious roots. Spores are produced, in cones on the undersides of the leaves.
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]
FAC: Facultative
Commonly occurs as either a hydrophyte or non-hydrophyte (non-wetlands).
Other information
National Pest Plant Accord species
This plant is listed in the 2020 National Pest Plant Accord. The National Pest Plant Accord (NPPA) is an agreement to prevent the sale and/or distribution of specified pest plants where either formal or casual horticultural trade is the most significant way of spreading the plant in New Zealand. For up to date information and an electronic copy of the 2020 Pest Plant Accord manual (including plant information and images) visit the MPI website.
Environmental Weed (2024)
This plant is named in a list of 386 environmental weeds in New Zealand 2024 prepared by DOC. 759 candidate species were considered for inclusion on this new comprehensive list of environmental weeds in New Zealand. The species considered were drawn from published lists of weed species, lists of plants that must be reported or managed by law if observed, existing national and regional programmes and agreements for pest management, and species already managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC). Candidate species were then assessed to see if they were fully naturalised and whether they have more than minor impacts in natural ecosystems. Read the full report here.
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.
SELKRA