Rhizome erect, short and stout, covered with brown scales with long-tapering tips. Fronds tufted, erect, 60–150 (rarely to 200) cm long, soft to firm-textured. Stipe usually more than half the frond length, slender, stiff, chestnut-brown, shiny. Lamina 2–4-pinnate, triangular to ovate-triangular, light green to yellow-green, glabrous or with hairs along lower surface of midveins and rachises; rachises red-brown. Primary pinnae distant, triangular, slightly asymmetric, lower pinnae projecting out from main plane of lamina; secondary pinnae variable, bases decurrent, apices frequently linear. Pinnules oblong to narrowly oblong, sessile, bases decurrent, margins crenately toothed or almost entire; veins relatively distant, simple or forked, free. Sori continuous or disjunct along lateral margins, often to tips and down decurrent bases.
GleP, VVP, VRiv, GipP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, NIS, EGL, EGU, WPro, HSF, HNF, OtR, Strz, MonT, HFE, VAlp. Also NT, SA, Qld, NSW (including Lord Howe Is.), Tas. (including Flinders Is. and King Is.), Norfolk Is. New Zealand, Polynesia. Widespread in Victoria, growing in a range of habitats from sheltered forested gullies to exposed rocky sites. Occasionally encountered in suburban areas (wall crevices, paths, borders etc.), having spread by spore from garden-grown plants.
In rock crevices or other exposed sites, fronds are firm and often stunted. The width of the ultimate segments is quite variable, but they are generally narrower than those of P. epaleata.
