Nephrolepis cordifolia (ladder fern) is widely recorded as an invasive weed, and is naturalised in New Zealand. The first records of this plant being wild date from the 1970s. The presence of other native species of Nephrolepis (in particular N. flexuosa Colenso) potentially complicates the recognition of the naturalised species. However, N. cordifolia has been easily distinguished by the presence of ‘bulbils’ or ‘tubers’ that appear along wire-like runners. In this paper we report the presence of the Boston fern complex (including N. exaltata) now apparently wild in the Auckland region. This aggregate is without bulbils and may superficially be confused with the other native and non-native species.