108 Mr. Gourlie on the Fossil Plants in the Glasgow Geological Museum. 



its impressions and casts, but from the affinity between the fossil Le- 

 pidodendron and two existing genera of plants. In the first volume of 

 the " Fossil Flora," by Dr. Lindley and Mr. Hutton, the authors express 

 their belief that the Lepidodendra would be found to be intermediate 

 between the Conifer ce and Lycopodiacea3 of the present day. The first 

 of these natural orders, the Goniferce, comprehends the pines, larch, 

 cedar, &c. The Lycopodiacece-, on the other hand, are small in size 

 compared with either the Lepidodendra or the ConiferWy and a few 

 species are indigenous to this country, where they are familiarly known 

 as Club-mosses. The opinion referred to has been confirmed by sub- 

 sequent investigations. Some of the specimens of this genus contri- 

 buted to the collection are of singular beauty, and the attention of 

 the Society was particularly directed to specimens of L. elegans, from 

 C. J. Baird, Esq., of Shotts Iron-work. A group of " restorations " 

 was also represented in a drawing, for the purpose of conveying some 

 idea of the probable appearance of this genus of plants. 



Lyginodendron Landshurgii, Gourlie. — A most remarkable cast of a 

 plant was lately sent to me by the Rev. David Landsborough, which 

 was found in a quarry of carboniferous sandstone at Stevenston, 

 Ayrshire. The specimen when found had a coating of coal, which the 

 quarryman unfortunately"picked off with his knife, but the exposed 

 surface presents a very singular appearance, and is unlike any fossil 

 plant which we have ever seen figured. Its peculiar feature, which is 

 at once apparent on inspection, is its resemblance to part of a common 

 osier basket. Hence Mr. Landsborough has for some time been in 

 the habit of humorously distinguishing it as " Noah's Creel," for want 

 of a better name. To supply this desideratum in nomenclature, and 

 as no such fossil appears to have been described or figured, I have 

 ventured to name it Lyginodendron Landshurgii, forming the generic 

 name from xvytuos, wicker-work, and hul^ov, a tree, and dedicating it by 

 the specific name to my friend Mr. Landsborough, a gentleman who is 

 distinguished not only as a pious and conscientious parish minister, 

 but as an enthusiastic and most successful cultivator of natural history, 

 — one, too, whose warm-hearted and amiable disposition endears him 

 to all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance. The fragments of 

 the fossil were spread over a space of about two yards, the finest speci- 

 men found being about eighteen inches in length, by three in breadth, 

 and have not been observed except in that place. In the same quarry 

 a great many fossil fruits occur, which are obviously those of a palm, 

 and also specimens of Sternhergia approximata, a singular and rather 

 rare coal plant. A fine specimen has been deposited in the museum 

 of the Andersonian by Mr. J. Craig. The impressions of the fronds of 

 ferns were also noticed as being extremely common in the shales and 

 limestones of the coal formation, there being not fewer than 130 species 

 known, nearly all of which belong to the tribe Polypodiacece. 



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