Low-epiphytic or less often terrestrial fern, occasionally in moist rock crevices; rhizome widely creeping, branching, up to 8 mm diameter, with fronds 3–4 cm apart and with iridescent brown narrowly triangular entire attenuate rhizome scales 3–5 mm long ending in a short hair-point. Fronds widely spaced, erect, not proliferous, 60–200 cm long with pinnae, thinly coriaceous. Stipe dark brown to almost black, (11–)15–70(–77?) cm long, with few brown lanceolate to ovate small scales similar to those on the rhizome. Lamina very narrowly elliptic to lanceolate in outline, 26–101x10–26 cm, 1-pinnate to 2-pinnatifid, acuminate, basal pinnae somewhat reduced, apical segment deeply pinnatifid or less often the apical pinnae decrescent. Pinnae 14–35 pairs, alternate or subopposite, (shiny) dark green above, narrowly lanceolate, 6–14(–25)x1–2.3(–3) cm, mostly shortly petiolate, unequally cuneate at the base tending to be slightly auriculate acroscopically, coarsely serrate to shallowly lobed with serrate lobes to 2/3 of the way to the costa, the lobes at a 45° angle, apex linear-attenuate, glabrous on both surfaces except for scattered pale brown ovate-acuminate scales ± 1 mm long; costa closer to basiscopic margin, veins forked and at very sharp angle with the costa. Rachis dull brown to purple-brown to black, not winged, glabrous at maturity or nearly so. Sori usually many, oblong, 3–9 mm long, 1–3 mm wide at maturity, borne in 2 rows closely set along and parallel to the costa; indusium linear, membranous, entire, ± 1 mm wide, occasionally hidden when the sori are almost contiguous and sporangia are at full development. Fig. 4: 6–7, p. 25.