The laminar scales of the fern Elaphoglossum paleaceum were studied to determine if they act as a morphological mechanism to protect leaves from excess light. We hypothesized that if scales serve this purpose, then individual plants growing in high light would have greater laminar scale density than those in low light. For our first experiment, plants from high light roadsides were collected and subjected to artificial scale removal and then exposed to super-saturating pulse of light for 30 min. We found that leaves with their scales removed exhibited significantly greater photoinhibition than leaves with scales intact. Leaves with intact scales recovered fully after twelve hours whereas those with scales removed remained photoinhibited. Scale density on the adaxial side of leaves was positively correlated with light intensity. The data from this study indicate that fern laminar scales help reduce photoinhibition and potentially function as a morphological defense against photodamage.