Osmunda spectabilis, known as American royal fern, is a species of fern native to a large area of the New World, from the eastern half of Canada and the United States to Argentina.

 Osmunda spectabilis is an easy fern to recognize in the New World flora. Although it closely resembles species O. regalis, O. japonica, and O. lancea, only O. spectabilis is found growing naturally in the New World. The fronds of O. spectabilis can exceed 1 meter in length and are bipinnate. The pinnules are attached by a very narrow base. The plant produces separate sterile and fertile fronds. Fertile fronds are similar to the sterile fronds, in the lower and middle portions, but the top-most pinnae are fertile and they are much reduced and brown when mature in the early summer.

Distribution and habitat: American royal fern is most commonly found growing in wetter soils such as those found in wet forests, bogs, and along streams and lakes.

Taxonomy: 

Read more Source: Wikipedia, article Osmunda spectabilis. Content adapted from Wikipedia, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Accessed on 18/07/2026. Geographic distribution Loading map... ✖ • 1 record - • 2 or 3 records - • 4 to 10 records - • 11 to 50 records - • Over 51 records Species photographs Last published photographs Photography ID: 450733  Moreno Buenos Aires Argentina 06/19/2021 Marcos Augusto Lartigau  View all photographs of the species  Add a photography of this species Species vocalizations Last vocalizations published  Add an audio of this species Species videos Last filmings published  Add a film of this species Species reports  Detail of places sorted by number of records Page 1 Record ID Date Exact time Country Province / department Place Filmed Photographed Recorded vocal Observed Heard Wounded or dead Number of individuals User or Bibliography Detail 1731290 19/06/2021 Argentina Buenos Aires Moreno Marcos Augusto Lartigau Page 1  Add a record of this species 📖 Recommended citation Please use the following reference when citing this species account. EcoRegistros. 2026. Osmunda spectabilis – Species account. Accessed from www.ecoregistros.org on 20/09/2026.