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Story: European exploration

Lace fern

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Lace fern

William Colenso was a passionate collector of botanical specimens. On his 1841 journey he collected and described this lace fern, Leptolepia novae-zelandiae.

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Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Reference: MA_I.033608

Permission of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Jock Phillips, European exploration – William Colenso and the east coast, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/object/11253/lace-fern (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Jock Phillips, published 1 March 2009.