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Perennial fern of the Davalliaceae family, native to the Fiji Islands and more broadly to the South Pacific region. It naturally grows on tree trunks, rocks, and damp cliffs of tropical forests, where it lives as an epiphyte or lithophyte, clinging to rough surfaces thanks to its creeping rhizomes.
These rhizomes are one of the most striking features of the species: thick, covered with tawny to reddish-brown scales, they spread freely beyond the pot or support, which gives the plant the English nickname "rabbit's foot fern". The fronds, finely cut into overlapping triangular segments, bright and vivid green, reach 30 to 50 cm in length and cascade downwards.
In its natural habitat, it does not flower in the strict sense; reproduction is carried out by spores borne on the underside of the pinnules.
In cultivation, it thrives better outdoors than in overheated interiors, where it tends to wither. It appreciates constant humidity, including at the root level. Thus extracted from its cultivation pot and placed directly in a terracotta saucer forming an island, with a permanent water layer of 1 to 3 cm maintained around without ever submerging the rhizomes, the plant survived an entire winter with temperatures dropping to -8°C without damage. In March, the fronds still bear the russet and bronzed hues left by the cold, but the intertwined rhizomes, escaping from all sides of the saucer, already show numerous green buds in the process of budding. It is likely the combination of protective cover and high ambient humidity, which prevents the dehydration of the rhizomes, that explains this resistance superior to what is indicated by classic horticultural literature.