Common names: wahine noho mauna (Hawaiian wahine, woman; noho, lives; mauna, mountain: lady of the mountain)

Endemic

Latin tamarix, the tamarisk tree, + -inus, having the quality of, suggesting its resemblance to the tamarisk tree.

Plants small, delicate, epiphytic. Rhizomes short-creeping, thick, 4-8 mm diam. (including scales). Fronds clustered, usually erect, close, mostly 8-20 cm long. Stipes usually 1/4-1/6 frond length, 0.5-1 mm diam., narrowly winged, glands numerous. Blades 2-pinnate, flat (pinnae and pinnules in same plane as blade), ovate, lanceolate, elliptic; or oblong, or linear to sub linear, often with a three-dimensional quality caused by pinnae and pinnules radiating away from plane of blade (fronds resembling bottle-brushes), acroscopic basal pinnule often again slightly pinnatifid, numerous dark reddish brown, red, yellow, or colorless glands present; rachises winged. Pinnae usually smaller at bases of fronds, distant or overlapping, narrowing slightly to abrupt tips. Pinnules spatulate to linear, tips rounded to acute, acroscopic pinnule closest to rachis sometimes again pinnatifid. Sari abaxial or subapical, not wider than ultimate segments, or sori extending beyond tips of ultimate segments, extending from tips of segments equally from upper and lower surfaces.

Common epiphyte in wet-mesic to rain forests, 300-1,300 m, all major islands. It is most commonly found on 'ohi'a (Metrosideros polymorpha) trees.

The most common species in the genus, this very attractive fern is morphologically variable and in some areas forms morphologic continuums with A. tamariscinus var. montanus.

Adenophorus tamariscinus may be distinguished from A. epigaeus and A. tripinnatifidus by its tight cluster of fronds on a short-creeping, thick, scaly rhizome, and its usually 2-pinnate fronds. The other two species have thin, long-creeping rhizomes. Adenophorus abietinus differs by its smaller fronds, thinner stipes, very small ultimate segments, and sori usually wider than the ultimate segments.