Which is a type of fern, Cibotium or Ecballium?
Cibotium Cibotium (from the Greek "kibootion", meaning chest or box) is a genus of 11 species of tropical tree fern—subject to much confusion and revision—distributed fairly narrowly in Hawaiʻ i (four species, plus a hybrid, collectively known as hāpuʻ u), Southeast Asia (five species), and the cloud forests of Central America and Mexico (two species). Some of the species currently listed in the literature seem to be synonyms or local-variant subspecies. "Cibotium glaucum", from Hawaiʻ i, is the most frequently encountered "Cibotium" species in the horticultural trade, together with its sibling species "Cibotium chamissoi" and the potentially huge "Cibotium menziesii". The remaining Hawaiian "Cibotium", "C. nealiae", is a 1 m dwarf variety, restricted to the island of Kauaʻ i that is never seen in the horticultural trade. Precise identification of "Cibotium" species is difficult, although all have shiny and rather waxy fronds when viewed from above, with varying degrees of powdery-pale blush when seen from underneath. The natural habitat of "Cibotium" is among the dripping trees and stream gullies of the rainforests on Hawaiʻ i's windward volcanic slopes.
Cyathea geluensis Cyathea geluensis is a species of tree fern native to central and eastern New Guinea as well as the Louisiade Archipelago, where it grows in mossy forest. In New Guinea itself, plants grow at an altitude of 1000–2000 m, however they are present at lower elevations of 700–900 m on associated islands. The trunk of this tree fern is erect and may be 5 m tall or more. Fronds are bi- or tripinnate and 1-2.5 m long. They are usually about ten live fronds present in the crown at once. The stipe may be warty and/or have short spines as well as many scattered scales towards the base. These scales are pale to dark and have dull, fragile edges. Sori occur near the fertile pinnule midvein and are protected by pale, thin indusia. "C. geluensis" is a variable taxon and further study is needed to determine whether it does not in fact represent a species complex.