The Scottish Naturalist. 57 



The larger and more perishable fungi are in so many cases 

 difficult to determine correctly, that we think that it is a 

 pity that Mr. Paterson does not mention his authority for the 

 names. Some Agarici seem to be almost always constant 

 to their described characters, but others are so variable in their 

 forms and approach other species so closely (being probaby, as 

 ]Mr. Worthington Smith has suggested, hybrids) that without 

 corroboration by an " authority " we are disposed to hesitate 

 before accepting them. The list under consideration would 

 therefore be more valuable if Mr. Paterson would add to it the 

 " authority " for the determination of the more critical species. 

 Of the less perishable species, we conclude that specimens have 

 been preserved. 



Regarding some of the species in this list, we should have 

 been glad to have had more information. For example, 

 Folysacciim olivaceum Fr., a species of which it is remarked 

 in the " Handbook of British Fungi," " it is so extremely rare 

 that neither the Rev. M. J. Berkeley nor ourselves have seen 

 a single specimen," is mentioned by Mr. Paterson as occuring 

 at Bothwell. Aiddiwn soldanellce which has only in this 

 country been recorded from Glasgow Botanic Gardens, is 

 dismissed by the compiler with the simple remark " common," 

 which also is all the information given about the distribution of 

 2^ out of the 29 species of y^cidium mentioned, including 

 yE. arl and crassiiin. Regarding the latter two we notice that 

 though JScidimji art is said to be '' common," Arwn viaculattwi 

 is said, in the list of Phanerogams to be '•' rare," and that while 

 yE. crasswn is said to occur commonly {jE. pcridymeni is given 

 as a distinct species) no species of Rhainnus is given as occurring 

 at all. We might, if space permitted, give other examples in 

 illustration of our remark that additional information would much 

 increase the value of this list. We expect that the Vibrissea 

 truncorum found on Ben Lomond is more likely to be V. Mar- 

 garita, which seems to be rather widely distributed on the 

 mountains. 



The volume concludes with a list of the larger marine Algse 

 of the Firth of Clyde by Mr. J. A. Mahoney. 



We have noticed this work at much greater length than we in- 

 tended, but not more perhaps than it deserves. Though neces- 

 sarily little more than a catalogue of names, it still forms a valu- 

 able contribution towards our knowledge of the distribution of 

 animals and plants in Scotland, and causes us to hope that at 



