Ladder Brake

Pteris vittata

Found in old walls with lime mortar, canal banks, hammocks, disturbed areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

-55

Severe harm

Not native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 59%

Light: Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…

Do not plant. Listed invasive in Florida.

At a glance

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 48 Florida counties.

Habitats

Coastal Plain hammocks; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 84 animals.

Acadian Flycatcher
Empidonax virescens
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Goldfinch
Carduelis tristis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Redstart
Setophaga ruticilla
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Robin
Turdus migratorius
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Baltimore Oriole
Icterus galbula
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Barred Owl
Strix varia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Belted Kingfisher
Megaceryle alcyon
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black Vulture
Coragyps atratus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-and-White Warbler
Mniotilta varia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-whiskered Vireo
Vireo altiloquus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue Jay
Cyanocitta cristata
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Polioptila caerulea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Brown Thrasher
Toxostoma rufum
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Brown-headed Cowbird
Molothrus ater
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Cape May Warbler
Dendroica tigrina
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Carolina Wren
Thryothorus ludovicianus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Cedar Waxwing
Bombycilla cedrorum
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Chimney Swift
Chaetura pelagica
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Chipping Sparrow
Spizella passerina
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Chuck-will's-widow
Caprimulgus carolinensis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Grackle
Quiscalus quiscula
Birds. 1 shared habitat

All wildlife of Florida

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Pteris

Callopistria floridensisFlorida Fern Caterpillar
Homochlodes fritillariaPale Homochlodes
Spodoptera latifasciaOrange-Striped Armyworm, Velvet Armyworm Moth

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Pteridaceae

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Conservation status

Florida rank	SNA
Global rank	GNR
FL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

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