Grand Canyon National Park - Ferns (U.S. National Park Service)

Fossil Fern from the Hermit Shale - GRCA

Ferns differ from other vascular plants in that they reproduce with spores rather than seeds.

The fossil record in Grand Canyon reveals that ferns are the oldest living plant in the park. Fossil ferns found in the Hermit Shale date back 400 million years.

Maidenhair fern

Two species of fern commonly found near seeps and springs along the Colorado River are the maidenhair fern and the brittle fern. The Mexican Woodsia and Oregon Woodsia ferns are more rare and grow in moist soil crevices, on ledges and among boulders.

Patrick J. Alexander @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database

Beaded lipfern - Cheilanthes wootonii - found along the Bright Angel Trail in the canyon at 3,300 feet elevation.

Related Information

Canyon Sketches Vol 02 - April 2008
Volunteers Help Control Invasive Plants
Invasive plants such as Sahara mustard pose a serious ecological threat to Grand Canyon. Volunteers have made important contributions towards controlling this aggressive invader over the last few years. Volunteer trips with Science and Resource Management’s vegetation program are fun and educational and give people who love Grand Canyon the opportunity to help preserve park resources.

Canyon Sketches Vol 05 - August 2008
Park Biologists Conserve Rare Plant
Plant biologists identified several populations of Tusayan flameflower (Phemeranthus validulus) in areas that will be impacted by the construction of parking lots at Canyon View Information Plaza. In order to conserve this rare Grand Canyon species, they recently salvaged plants from construction zones and transplanted them in suitable habitat nearby.

Visit the Canyon Sketches eMagazine Home Page

Colorado River Plant List (280kb Excel Worksheet)

Grand Canyon Exotic Plant List 2008 02 (45kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Vascular Plant List (211kb Excel Worksheet)

Grand Canyon Non-Vascular Plants (330.7kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Potentially Invasive Weed List (17.8kb PDF File)

Grand Canyon Threatened & Endangered Species List
(52.5kb PDF File)

Guide to the Special Status Plants of Grand Canyon
Part One (1.44MB PDF File)
Part Two (2.05MB PDF File)
Part Three (1.57MB PDF File)

List of Special Status Plants of Grand Canyon
(30kb Excel Worksheet)