THE FERNS OF NORTH-WESTERN INDIA. 05 



Gamble, and in 1878 by Collett ; and, as will be seen above, the fern grows in 

 many other places wesfc of Nepdl. 



The scales of the rhizome have not been correctly described by Baker or 

 Clarke : they are not " brown or nearly black," or " brown black." They are 

 bicoloured, ie., pale-brown with a broad dark-brown streak down the centre. 

 Clarke says — " Frond often sub-cordate at base." Among the numerous speci- 

 mens in Gamble's and my collections I cannot find a frond that is not cordate 

 or sub-cordate below. Many examples have sori oval or oblong, the major axis 

 directed towards the margin. Some of Duthie's specimens from British Garh- 

 wal, 12,000', have sori biserial between the veins, often confluent. These grew 

 on trees ; but elsewhere, so far as I know, the fern is always on rocks. I can 

 see no resemblance to, or affiuity with, P. oxylobum, 



32. P. cyrtolobum, J. Sm., C. R. 563. Pleopeltis Stswartii, Bedd., Syn. 

 Fil, 2d. ed. 573. Pleopeltis malacodon, Hook., var. £. mujus t Bedd. H. B. 

 363, and Suppt. 96. 



Punjab : Chamba — MacDonell ; fide Beddome in Suppt. H. B. 



N.-W. P. : D. D. Z>;^.— Mussooree," The Paik 11 63-6500', Mackinnons 18S0, Hope 

 1887 and 1895 ; Kumaun— Binsar 7500', S. & W. ; Gori Vy., 7-8000', Trotter 1891 ; 

 Mangalia Gor 10,000'. MacLeod 1893. 



Distrib.— Asia : N. iDd. (Him.) Nepal to Bhotan 9-12,000': very common, 

 Clarke ; Assam— Jakpho Mt. 8500' Clarke ; Khasia Dist. 5000', Clarke. 



This species is not in McDonelFs List of Chamba Ferns, and I have seen no 

 specimen from the westward of Mussooree. Trotter in his printed list said he 

 had a Chamba specimen from McDonell ; but the species does not appear in 

 his later MS. list given to me ; and I have four fronds of P. oxylobum marked 

 by him P. cyrtolobum. 



I am not much surprised that writers with a tendency to unite species, and 

 who have not seen this growing in its natural habitats, thinking it a form of 

 P. malacodo?i, at least if they can get over the marked differences of cutting 

 and scales of rhizome. But, having seen P. malacodon growing only on rocks 

 in the Simla Eegion, at high elevations, and P. cyrtolobum growing only on 

 trees in Mussooree, at a much lower elevation, and having observed their very 

 different habit and appearance, I cannot hesitate to agree with Clarke in separat- 

 ing them, The scales of the rhizome are bicoloured like those of P. malacodon 

 but they are much narrower and darker coloured, and they end in long thick 

 hairs. The frond is less cordate at the base, and sometimes quite decurrent on 

 the stipes ; and the texture is much thinner than that of P. malacodon. The 

 fronds vary from occasionally simple to three-Iobed, and to three pairs of lobes, 

 besides the long terminal lobe. Major MacLeod's two fronds in my possession, 

 from Kumaun, are— one, trilobate, and the other, with stipes over 4. in., has a 

 frond 10 in. 1. with 4 pairs of lobes — the longest nearly 6 in. 1. A frond from 

 Mussooree is nearly 12 in. 1., with terminal lobe all but 8 inches. 



