crosier
Quick Summary
A crosier, also known as a crozier, is a staff that resembles a shepherd's crook and is carried by bishops and abbots as a symbol of their office. The term "crosier" can also refer to a plant structure with a coiled end.1
In botany, this coiled end is specifically associated with ferns. Fern fronds, or leaves, are characteristically coiled in the bud, a stage known as a fiddlehead or crosier. This unrolling process, called circinate vernation, is a distinctive feature of fern leaf development. Ferns are a diverse group of nonseed vascular plants found worldwide, with many species common in tropical and subtropical regions. They range in size from small aquatic plants to tall tree ferns.23
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