Elaphoglossum peltatum

Peltate Tongue Fern, Shield Tongue Fern

A cloud-forest epiphyte from the mountains of Central and South America, found creeping along mossy logs and rock faces at elevations of 600–2,450 m. It produces two distinct frond types: broad, leathery sterile fronds and narrower fertile ones whose entire underside is covered in sporangia — a condition called acrostichoid, where sporangia replace the whole blade surface rather than forming discrete sori. The long-creeping rhizome makes it a natural fit for the background or floor of a closed terrarium, where it spreads slowly across cork bark or sphagnum without crowding smaller companions. It does best at 15–26 °C with humidity consistently above 70% and indirect light.