1902] Andrews, — Habenaria hyperborea and its Allies 79 



was excited early one autumn morning by the noisy activity of a flock 

 of crows in a field within sight of his bedroom window. He perhaps 

 would have thought no more of the matter had not the same thing 

 occurred on the following day. This stimulated him to investigate. 

 On reaching the spot he found that the crows had been feeding on 

 Agaricus campestris which was growing there in abundance. The 

 evidence was unmistakable. Amused at their careless betrayal 

 of their plunder — so unlike the usual behavior of mycophagists — 

 he took measures to anticipate and disappoint the crows thereafter. 

 Cambridge, Massachusetts. 



A NOTE UPON RECENT TREATMENT OF HABENARIA 

 HYPERBOREA AND ITS ALLIES. 



A. Le Roy Andrews. 



Dr. Rydberg's elaboration of this puzzling section of the genus 

 Habenaria in the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club, for Novem- 

 ber, 1 901 (pp. 605-632) recalls notes which I have been accumula- 

 ting for several years which seem to find their explanation in it. The 

 section has been subject to a variety of treatment, from that of 

 Kraenzlin on the one hand, who reduces its American representatives 

 to two species including as varieties of Platanthera hyperborea such 

 distinct forms as Lindley's Platanthera dilatata, P. convallariaefolia 

 and P. leucostachys, to that of Dr. Rydberg, who, maintaining the 

 other extreme, restores the species of Lindley and other authors and 

 adds a number of new ones until the two have become twenty-three. 

 For these he institutes a new genus Limnorchis. 



The portion of his key including the six species to which he 

 definitely assigns stations in New England is as follows. — 



Flowers green. 



Spur decidedly clavate, thickened and obtuse at apex, shorter than lip. 



1. L. major (Lange) Rydb. 

 Spur slender, scarcely thickened toward apex, often acutish, equalling or 

 slightly exceeding lip. 

 Plant tall and stout; flowers comparatively large ; sepals 4-6 mm. long. 



2. L. media Rydb. 

 Plant slender, flowers small; sepals 2.5-4 mm. long. 

 Flowers almost erect in rather lax spike. 



3. L. Iluronensis (Nutt.) Rydb. 



