editor’s note All collections were covered by a permit from the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources; and all activities were coordinated with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Caribbean Ecological Services Field Office (CESFO) and the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PRDNER). Thank you to our partners in these efforts to conserve endangered endemic ferns of western Puerto Rico, including Omar Monsegur, Xiomara Labiosa, Iván Llerandi Román, JP Segarra, Jen Valentín and José Cruz Burgos (USFWS, CESFO); Emily Sessa (University of Florida, Department of Biology); Susan Fawcett (University of Vermont, Department of Plant Biology); Jeanine Velez, Carlos Santos Flores, Benjamin Van Ee and Eugenio Santiago (University of Puerto Rico); and Jose Sustache (PRDNER). fall 2016 21 meant that Lange and I needed to learn to recognize a good deal more than just our six target species, which we eventually did with the help of George Proctor’s book “The Ferns of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands,” as well as help from Puerto Rican botanists, and by studying specimens in the University of Puerto Rico herbarium. By the end of our trip, we had collected 50 tissue samples for Sessa and Fawcett, learned many new (to us) species, and (most humblingly) realized how much more we still had to learn. Working with the ferns of western Puerto Rico is especially rewarding for us, in part because we love visiting our familiar Miami ferns in a truly tropical Caribbean setting. Additionally, this work has put us in touch with collaborators from a wide range of backgrounds, all of whom share a passion for rare fern conservation. We are thrilled that we have received funding to return to western Puerto Rico in winter 2017 to continue this work. I hope that some of our photos included here convey the beauty and diversity of these plants, as well as the commitment of those of us who are working to save them. 7 6 10 11 5. Adiantum pyramidale 6. Thelypteris hildae 7. Neurodium lanceolatum 8. Polystichum calderonense 9. Diplazium sp. 10. Dicranopteris pectinata 11. Asplenium erosum
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