# Microsorum pteropus 'Trident' - An unstable variant?



## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi All,

I have a 30 gallon tank that has been set-up since January, 2010; with the same substrate, hardscape, and mostly the same plants. In this tank I have only had Microsorum pteropus 'Trident' and Microsorum pteropus 'Windelov' along with some stem plants and Marsilea minuta.

Here is what is strange, this morning I pulled about 7" of regular Microsorum pteropus rhizome (no leaf nodes) that was growing on the piece of hardscape where the Microsorum pteropus 'Trident' has been since I set up the tank. There has never been regular Microsorum pteropus grown in that tank, on that hardscape, nor have I ever grown regular Microsorum pteropus in any of my other tanks. So where did this regular Microsorum pteropus come from?

I purchased the hardscape new from a LFS store in 2008. It appeared to be the regular imported Malaysian driftwood that is imported and sold throughout the United States. In December 2009 I tore down the first 'scape and re-scaped with the species in the tank today. My only thought is that the a small piece of Microsorum pteropus 'Trident' rhizome reverted to it's regular form when I had a huge "melt" of my 'Trident' and 'Windelov' about 8 months ago. I have to say that the regular Microsorum pteropus grows more vigorously than the Microsorum pteropus 'Trident'.

Any thoughts on this?

30 Gallon; January 2010


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## Cavan Allen (Jul 22, 2004)

It's not a cultivar like the 'Tropica'. I have seen specimens from Sarawak that look just like the trident.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Cavan,

Thanks for the comment, it just never occurred to me that 'Trident' could revert to a normal Microsorum pteropus form. I have had the occasional leaf show up on a rhizome that was not lobed, usually immature leaves. But this was a fair amount of rhizome all with standard Microsorum pteropus leaves.


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

After 4 years having a huge amount of trident, I never had one normal leaf. Maybe a small piece of normal rhizome was in between the Trident when you bought it, and you didn't notice it till now?


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi Yo-han,

You may be correct, but I purchased that piece of driftwood hardscape new for that tank for six plus years ago and have never had regular java fern in any of my tanks. That said, I have seen java fern 'regenerate' with no visible rhizome - just small pieces of root still attached to hardscape.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

I don’t really have a grasp of this stuff but seeing cultivars and sports reverting to the original form isn’t all that abnormal. Fwiw. After many years I have seen mature java fern suddenly produce large three pronged leaves.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi BruceF,

I just found it unusual to find rhizomes of regular Microsorum pteropus in a clump of Microsorum pteropus 'Trident' after over five (5) years.


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

Yes Roy I would too.


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