Fun Facts:
- Despite its local name “Paku Merak” (Peacock Fern), Spikemoss is not a true fern but a prehistoric primitive plant lineage that predates the dinosaurs.
- Certain species in the Malaysian jungle display a stunning, iridescent metallic blue-green color on their leaves to capture low light under the deep canopy.
- It is incredibly adapted to the dark, featuring delicate, scale-like micro-leaves arranged in neat, flat fan patterns.
- Traditional communities have used boiled preparations of the plant as a protective health tonic for mothers after childbirth.
Where Can You Find It?
- It blankets the dampest, most deeply shaded forest floors, mossy rocks, and earth banks where little else can grow.
- Look directly at the steep soil banks and shaded rocks right next to your feet along the damp sections of the Pulai Trail.
- Watch how its leaves shimmer with a unique, peacock-blue glow when the sunlight hits them at a specific angle.