January edition of Catalogue of Life is published

The Catalogue of Life, 20th January 2014 is now available online at www.catalogueoflife.org/col.  The new edition includes updates of the World Ferns checklist that was incorporated into CoL last year as part of the i4Life project. Ferns are a very widespread linaege of plants often now considered to include the Horsetails (Equisetum) and the Whisk Fern (Psilotum).  One of the largest fern genera is Asplenium which has >800 species listed in Catalogue of Life. Illustrated here is Asplenium ceterach which has distinctive rust-brown scales on the underside of its fronds.  This has lead to the common name 'Rustyback fern'.

Asplenium ceterach growing in a rock crevice in southern Spain.