Korea Flora: Habit: Evergreen perennial herb; leaves fasciculate at apex of thick, short rhizome. Stipe: 20-50 cm long, densely scaly. Scales: Linear to linear-lanceolate; margins entire; brown to dark brown; becoming narrower and shorter upwards, readily deciduous. Blade: Oblong to ovate-oblong; apex acute; 30-70 cm × 20-30 cm; bipinnate; adaxial surface glossy. Pinnae: Lanceolate to oblong; apex caudate; shortly stalked; abaxial rachis with bullate scales. Pinnules: Oblong to linear-lanceolate; apex rounded or acute; margins shallowly serrate.
Sori: Arranged in single row; indusium round-reniform with entire margins. Distinctive Features: Young leaves and indusia with reddish-purple tinge Related Taxa: var. ambigens Nakai, Sori confined to upper half of pinnules, More deeply serrate margins

Habitat: Growing in forests of southern islands and Ulleung Island.
Note: Distinguished by glossy surface, caudate pinna apex, and reddish-purple young parts. 

[Translated from Flora of Korea by T.B. Lee]

Japan Flora: Rhizomes ascending, stout; fronds evergreen; stipes 30-60 cm. long, often reddish or brownish; scales linear to linear-lanceolate, nearly entire, brown to black­brown, 10-15 mm. long in the basal, the upper ones smaller; blades broadly ovate to oblong, 30-70 cm. long, 15-35 cm. wide, acuminate, bipinnate, the rachis with linear-lanceolate to linear scales 2-3.5 mm. long; pinnae 8-12 pairs, sessile or nearly so, acuminate, the rachis with appressed ovate-saccate small scales with or without a linear tail; pinnules narrowly oblong to linear-lanceolate, 2-4 cm. long, 4-7 mm. wide, acute to rounded at apex, toothed, sometimes pinnately lobed, nearly glabrous above, with appressed hairlike short scales on veins beneath; sori mostly medhn, in 2 series on the pinnules; indusia often reddish while young, orbicular-reniform, entire, about 15 mm. across. Woods in low mountains and hills. 

Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu; very common and variable. Korea, Ryukyus, Formosa, China to Philippines.

var. caudipinna (Nakai) H. Ito. Blades longer, with ascending pinnatilobed pinnules to 6 cm. long; scales more dense.  Warmer parts of our area.

var. purpurascens H. Ito. Stipes and rachis suffused purple. Kyushu (Yakushima). Ryukyus.

var. cystolepidota (Miq.) Nakai. Blade usually abruptly acumi­nate, the lowest pinnae wider with a wider posterior side; pinnules broader, often incurved-toothed to parted; sori smaller. Honshu (Kanto Distr. and westw.), Shikoku, Kyushu.

var. ambigens (Koidz.) Nakai. the blades elliptic, the pinnules obtuse, the fertile blades linear- oblong, often subendre and slightly crisped on margin.  Honshu (Kanto Distr. and westw.), Shikoku, Kyushu; rare.