NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. !)1 



Mr. J. H. Redfield remarked that, on a recent visit to the northern part of 

 the State of New York, he had noted the Botrychiumlunarioid.es and Botrychium 

 lanceolatum growing under circumstances that seemed to confirm the idea that 

 these species are really underground parasites, or epiphytic plants. More 

 than twenty plants were noticed scattered over a space of a mile in length, 

 and in every instance they were growing near the common blackberry (Rubut 

 mllosus), and every plant that was lifted had its roots in contact with the rool 

 of the blackberry. He referred to the peculiar character of the rool of tin 

 . genus, so different from that of other ferns, and so similar to that of some 

 /orchids, and to the fact that these species, so widely distributed, seem no- 

 where abundant, as favoring the idea of their epiphytic character. Mr. New- 

 man some years ago expressed the opinion that the British Botrychium lunaria 

 is an underground parasite, but Moore and others have doubted. Mr. II. de- 

 sired to call the attention of botanists to the conditions under which these and 

 other species of Botrychium may be found, with a view to determine the ques- 

 tion. 



Aug. 9th. 



Mr. Vaux, Vice-President, in the Chair. 



Fifteen members present. 



The following paper was presented for publication : 

 " On some new species of Fishes obtained by Prof. Orton from the 

 Maranon River, Upper Amazon and Napo Rivers." By Theo. Gill. 



Mr. Thomas Meehan said very little had been written about the causes of 

 those bunches of branches often seen in trees, and called by the people 

 "crow's nests," and by botanists fasciations. Dr. Masters, in Teratology, briefly 

 refers to them, and refers to '-over-nutrition" the cause of their existence. 

 He had watched almost daily the past year one of Abies balsamea on his own 

 grounds. The branchlets were weak, the leaves were comparatively long and 

 slender, not distichously arranged, pale in color, deciduous, and many of the 

 branchlets died in the winter. All these were evidences of weak nutrition. 



He had found two trees of sassafras, apparently of the same age, growing 

 within a few yards of each other, but one with numerous fasciculated bunches. 

 In addition to the characters in the other case, here the fasciculated tree was 

 not as large as the other one. 



That weakness, not strength, was the cause, was also proved by facts from 

 an opposite direction, namely, the law of sex. He had already shown that a 

 low condition of vitality favored male, at the expense of the female organs. 

 He had found a large number of fasciculations in the common blackberry, and 

 in all instances, besides the yellowness and the other marks, there was a ten- 

 dency to abortion in the pistils, an increase in the number of petals, and a 

 development of foliaceous points to the usual calyx segments. So that his 

 law of sex, as well as the usual phenomena of weakened vitality, indicated 

 that it was this and not over-nutrition which caused fasciations in tree-. 



Aug. 16th. 

 Mr. Vaux, Vice-President, in the Chair. 



Seven members present. 



Aug. 30th. 

 The President, Dr. Ruschenberger, in the Chair. 



Fifteen members present. 

 1870.J 



