358 MR. 0. T. DRUERY ON A SINGULAR MODE OE 



Further Notes on a singular Mode of Reproduction in Atlw/ 

 rium Filicc-fcemina, var. clarissima. By Charles T. Drleey. 

 (Communicated by Dr. J. Murie, F.L.S.) 



[Eead 20th November, 1884.] 



At a meeting of the Linnean Society in June last I had the 

 honour of bringing before your notice a record of certain pheno- 

 mena which I had observed during the past winter in connection 

 with the rejiroduction of a form of Athyrium Filix-foemina 

 through prothalli, which were not produced from spores but 

 from certain excrescences evolved in their stead upon the under 

 surface of the pinna?. The Athyrium in question, which was 

 found wild in Devon, had been for many years reputed bai'ren, the 

 fructification which appeared copiously yielding no perfect spores, 

 the result being that after a long period only two plants existed, 

 the original plant having permitted but one division. In 1883 

 one of these plants, which had been grown under cover, was 

 observed to produce upon the inferior surface of the pinna? a 

 large number of curious excrescences consisting of pear-shaped 

 bulbilloid growths, attached firmly to the frond by their thicker 

 extremities, and seated in every case within indusia, thus occu- 

 pying the place of sporangia, to which, however, they bore no 

 resemblance whatever. Mr. Qt. B. "Wollaston, whose attention 



Fig. 1. 



Fig. 1. Pyriform pseudobulbils or abnormal sporoid growths of 1883, enlarged. 

 Fig. 2. a, clavate abnormal sporoid growths of 1884 ; b, ragged indusium. 



was drawn to them by the previous discovery of bulbils proper 

 upon other Aihyria in the same year, which bulbils also occu- 

 pied the place of sori, was of opinion that they were also bulbils. 

 However, on comparing them with the bulbils produced on these 

 other Aihyria, I was struck by the fact that, whil,e in the other 

 cases the bulbils were seated in the centre of scales arranged 

 shuttlecock fashion around them, in this case indusia were present 



