Actiniopteris pauciloba Pic. Serm.

pauciloba: with few lobes; refers to the small number of pinnae segments in comparison with other species of the genus.

Rhizome creeping; rhizome scales linear, entire, black, sometimes with pale margin, up to 4.5 mm long. Stipe strawcoloured, brown to black at the base, glabrous. Fronds densely tufted, erect, dimorphic, differing only in size and stipe length not in shape and degree of lamina dissection. Sterile frond: stipe 2.5-12 cm; lamina pseudo-palmate, 4.5 cm long and 8 cm wide, dichotomously divided into 8-13 narrow linear segments, segments apices finely toothed. Fertile frond: stipe 9-26 cm long; lamina pseudo-palmate, 5 cm long and 10 cm wide, dividing dichotomously into 8-16 linear segments, segment ending in a point. Sori in submarginal lines; indusium continuous.

Angola, DRC, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe