Mountain holly fern (Polystichum scopulinum) COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 9

Special Significance of the Species

Polystichum scopulinum belongs to a relatively small group of species with a restricted Pacific Coast range that have their northern limits in southwestern British Columbia. In Quebec the species is even more dramatically disjunct. The importance of these peripheral and disjunct populations, especially with respect to their genetic characteristics, has yet to be studied adequately. Peripheral populations are often genetically and morphologically divergent from central populations and may have an evolutionary and ecological significance out of proportion to the percentage of the species they represent (Mayr 1982; Lesica and Allendorf 1995). The protection of genetically distinct peripheral populations may be important for the long-term survival of the species as a whole (Lesica and Allendorf 1995).

Although no Aboriginal uses were noted in a major ethnological database, the widespread eastern Christmas fern (P. acrostichoides) and western sword fern (P. munitum) are known for a variety of medicinal and other uses by Aboriginal peoples.

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