You mean Cyathea australis, yes? Without a working link to some good photographs there's nothing useful anybody can tell you - either about the apparently dying frond you describe - or about the overall status of the tree fern itself. There may be absolutely nothing wrong at all, but it's impossible to say without some visual information. Is the fern even rooted or just a bare trunk specimen? That's vitally important to know too. Nobody wants spots ON TOP of their leaflets, but you're not just making a fuss about the rows of spot-like sori on the UNDERSIDE of a sporing frond, by any chance...? One frond dying off is nothing to worry about in an otherwise healthy tree fern, especially in winter - C.australis isn't necessarily evergreen and defoliates entirely in many habitats - but some good pictures are going to be necessary to elicit the sort of advice that might set your mind at rest,

Normally when I see brown in the summer, I suspect a lack of water problem. The first indication of watering issues is browning on the leaf edges, which then 'moves' inwards but you also have some brown lesions in the middle of some leaves... that look resembles leaf spots, a fungal infection that spreads by overhead watering and high humidity areas. As the lesions grow, they can cover large portions of the leaf or all of it. I would proceed by first making sure that the soil is kept well mulched and evenly moist. Then make sure that there is no watering of the leaves. When watering and mulching, remember that the climbing hydrangeas have a large root system so water/mulch a bit far away from the trunk. Water the soil early in the morning, not the leaves. Test the soil in multiple areas before watering (to make sure that water is needed) but also test close and away from the main trunk. That way any root areas that are dry will get some water. Throw away any the worst of the infected leaves in the trash (say those whose = or > 1/3 of surface area is diseased). Monitor what happens and post again if there is a change. Leaf disease info: http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1212/ANR-1212.pdf

Since there are no real holes in the leaves to be seen, it's a bit hard to consider that damage being caused by chewing insects :-) It looks more like rust but that is not a common issue with laurels. It almost looks like it has a raised texture to it.....have you tried rubbing it off? Is it dry and papery? Can you provide a good, focused pic of just the leaf damage?

I got an Oroblanco grapefruit tree this year and planted it in a pot, because they have to be wintered inside. It gets too cold in the winter here for them. I live in northern Arizona. I have it on the patio. I water it roughly twice a week, more when it was really hot; it got to 114 in late June. It has been doing relatively well, but I recently noticed some of the leaves have small yellow spots on them. Is this a fungus? We did have a fairly wet summer. The foothills are still green. The monsoon season was wetter than last year. It was supposed to be a dwarf tree, but the tag didn't say that. I thought maybe it was the water. I water it with the hose bib near it.