In the Pacific Northwest, where I'm from, we have ferns all over our forests, so I think I tend to take for granted this really cool plant. Seeing its baby version made me realize that ferns have a complex lifecycle and many beautiful stages to admire.
Ferns live all over the world, and although I've seen them most in the wet forests around my home city of Portland, ferns can actually live in many different climates, from deserts to coastal areas. The ferns I saw in Parque Arví live in a wooded, semi-tropical environment lush with other foliage. These ferns also receive a lot of rain year-round.
The structure of a fern helps it to survive in a variety of different environments. For one, the fern's underground roots allow it to soak up water and nutrients like many other plants. The fern fronds, which branch out from the plant horizontally but often not too high vertically, allow the plant to soak up sunlight despite shade from taller trees above. The fronds also contain spores on the bottom side of the leaves. When animals brush up against the fern, they help loosen or carry the fern spores so that eventually they fall to the ground and begin the process of growing new fern plants.
Luckily, most species of ferns are pretty hardy and continue to survive in large numbers. While there are a small number of endangered species of ferns around the world, there are also some varieties that are considered invasive species because of their ability to reproduce rapidly and push out other native species.
