Fiddlehead is a name referring either to a young fern or to the top part of immature fronds that appear curled. The fiddlehead, or circinate vernation, unrolls as the fern matures and grows due to more growth in the inside of the curl. Classes Marattiopsida Osmundopsida Gleicheniopsida Pteridopsida A fern, or pteridophyte, is any one of a group of some twenty thousand species of plants classified in the Division Pteridophyta, formerly known as Filicophyta. ... This Australian tree fern is producing a new frond by the process of circinate vernation Vernation (from vernal, since that is when leaves spring forth in Temperate regions) is the formation of new leaves or fronds. ...

Fiddleheads at Milford, New Hampshire, 2004

The fiddlehead resembles the curled ornamentation (called a scroll) on the end of a stringed instrument, such as a fiddle. It is also called a crozier, after the curved staff used by shepherds and bishops. Download high resolution version (847x1311, 778 KB) Photo by Sarah M Bruce, Milford, NH, 2004 File links The following pages link to this file: Fiddlehead User:Samwisebruce Categories: GFDL images ... Download high resolution version (847x1311, 778 KB) Photo by Sarah M Bruce, Milford, NH, 2004 File links The following pages link to this file: Fiddlehead User:Samwisebruce Categories: GFDL images ... Milford is a town located in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire. ... The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a fifth apart. ...

The fiddleheads of certain ferns are eaten as a cooked leaf vegetable. The most popular of these are: Leaf vegetables, also called greens or leafy greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots. ...

• Bracken, Pteridium aquilinum, found worldwide
• Ostrich fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris, found in northern regions worldwide, and the central/eastern part of North America
• Cinnamon fern or buckhorn fern, Osmunda cinnamomea, found in the Eastern parts of North America
• Royal fern, Osmunda regalis, found worldwide
• Zenmai or flowering fern, Osmunda japonica, found in East Asia
• Vegetable fern, Athyrium esculentum, found throughout Asia and Oceania

Some ferns contain carcinogens, and Bracken has been implicated in stomach cancer. Despite this, most people can eat ostrich and cinnamon fern fiddleheads without any problems, and ostrich fern fiddleheads are a traditional dish of New Brunswick. In 1994, there were several instances of food poisoning associated with raw or lightly cooked fiddleheads in New York state and Western Canada. No definitive source of the food poisoning was identified, and authorities recommended thorough cooking of fiddlehead ferns to counteract any possible unidentified toxins in the plant. Species Pteridium aquilinum Pteridium caudatum Pteridium latiusculum and about 7-8 other species Brackens (Pteridium) are a genus of about ten species of large, coarse Antarctica and in all environments except for hot and cold deserts. ... Binomial name Matteuccia struthiopteris ( L.) Todaro The Ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) is a crown-forming, but also colony-forming, fern of northeastern North America. ... World map showing location of North America A satellite composite image of North America North America is the third largest continent in area and in population after Eurasia and Africa. ... East Asia can be defined in either cultural or geographic terms. ... Vegetable fern (Athyrium esculentum)) is an edible fern found throughout Asia and Oceania. ... Map of Oceania. ... In pathology, a carcinogen is any substance or agent that promotes cancer. ... In medicine, stomach cancer (also called gastric cancer) can develop in any part of the stomach and may spread throughout the stomach and to other organs. ... Motto: Spem reduxit (Hope was restored) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Fredericton Largest city Saint John Lieutenant Governor Herménégilde Chiasson Premier Bernard Lord (PC) Area 72,908 km² (8th)  - Land 71,450 km²  - Water 1,458 km² (2. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... Foodborne illness or food poisoning is caused by consuming food contaminated with pathogenic bacteria, toxins, viruses, prions or parasites. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... A toxin, in a scientific context, is a biologically produced substance that causes injury to the health of a living thing on contact or absorption, typically by interacting with biological macromolecules such as enzymes and receptors. ...

Many ferns also contain the enzyme thiaminase, which breaks down thiamine. This can lead to beriberi and other vitamin B complex deficencies if consumed to excess or if one's diet is lacking in these vitamins. Neuraminidase ribbon diagram An enzyme (in Greek en = in and zyme = leaven) is a protein, or protein complex, that catalyzes a chemical reaction and also controls the 3D orientation of the catalyzed substrates. ... Thiaminase is an enzyme (EC 2. ... Thiamine mononitrate Thiamine or thiamin, also known as vitamin B1, is a colorless compound with chemical formula C12H17ClN4OS. It is soluble in water and insoluble in alcohol. ... Beriberi is an ailment caused by a deficiency of vitamin B1 ( thiamine), the symptoms of which may include weight loss, emotional disturbances, impaired sensory perception, weakness, and periods of irregular heartbeat. ... Vitamin B is a complex of several vitamins. ... Vitamins are organic chemicals that a given living organism requires in trace quantities for good health, but which the organism cannot synthesize, and therefore must obtain from its diet. ...

Fiddleheads have been part of traditional diets in much of Asia, Australia and New Zealand, as well as among Native Americans for centuries. In Japan, bracken fiddleheads (known locally as わらび or 蕨, warabi) are a prized dish, and roasting the fiddleheads is reputed to neutralize any toxins in the vegetable. World map showing location of Asia A satellite composite image of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of the continent of Eurasia, defined by subtracting the European peninsula from Eurasia. ... Native Americans (also Indians, Aboriginal Peoples, American Indians, First Nations, Alaskan Natives, Amerindians, or Indigenous Peoples of America) are the indigenous inhabitants of The Americas prior to the European colonization, and their modern descendants. ...

External links

• Wild Harvest Gourmet Fiddlehead page (http://www.wild-harvest.com/pages/fiddlehead.htm)
• Edible Fern of Kamchatka (http://www.iks.ru/~balanev/index3.htm)