Selaginella stauntoniana

Plants epilithic or xerophytic, seasonally green, erect, 15-35 cm, with creeping subterranean rhizome and stolons; leaves on rhizome and stolons scalelike, reddish brown. Rhizophores restricted to creeping rhizome. Main stems branched in upper part or from lower part, not very regularly pinnately branched, reddish or brown, unbranched main stem 5-28 cm tall, main stem 0.8-2 mm in diam. in lower part, stem oval or terete, glabrous; primary leafy branches 3-5 pairs, 2 or 3 times pinnately branched, higher order branches forked, ultimate branches 1.8-3.2 mm wide including leaves. Axillary leaves slightly asymmetrical, triangular, 1-1.7 × 0.4-0.9 mm, base exauriculate, margin membranous, lacerate. Dorsal leaves imbricate, ovate-elliptic, 0.7-1.7 × 0.3-0.6 mm, not carinate, base obtuse, not peltate, margin entire or subentire, slightly revolute, apex acuminate-aristate, parallel to axis. Ventral leaves approximate to overlapping, slightly ascending, obliquely ovate or obliquely oblong, 1.4-2.2 × 0.6-1.2 mm, apex aristate; basiscopic margin entire, except base with 1 cilium; acroscopic base rounded, overlapping stem and branches, margin hyaline and membranous, denticulate. Strobili solitary, compact, tetragonal, 5-20 × 1.3-2 mm; sporophylls uniform, ovate-triangular, carinate, margin membranous, lacerate or lacerate-ciliolate, hyaline, apex long acuminate to aristate; megasporophylls and microsporophylls at intervals, or megasporophylls in middle on lower side, or megasporophylls throughout lower side; microsporangia transversely elliptic, rather thin, cells regular; microspores yellowish orange or orange-red, megaspores yellowish orange, without equatorial flange.