Adiantum

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Adiantum (maidenhair ferns; family Adiantaceae) A genus of ferns in which all the fronds are alike, usually with black, glossy petioles and wide, fanshaped leaflets. Rhizomes are scaly. Sori are borne near the vein ends on the reflexed tips of the leaflets. Some are cultivated as ornamentals. There are about 200 species. Most occur in the moist tropics and warm temperate regions, as far as the southern British Isles.