8 The Ohio Naturalist. [Vol. X, No. 1, 



AN INTERESTING BOTRYCHIUM HABITAT. 



John H. Schaffner. 



A common experience for a botanist is to go collecting in a 

 well-worked locality and find some interesting plant that was 

 not known there before. Such an experience came to me the 

 past summer on Cedar Point, Erie County, Ohio. The Point has 

 been worked botanically for many years by various collectors, 

 including myself. 



One day in the last week of June, I visited the north bank of 

 the large lagoon in the woods north of the summer resort. I 

 gathered a number of plants of no special importance and took 

 them to the Laboratory in my vacsulum for study. The fol- 

 lowing morning while throwing out tlfe material, I noticed a 

 broken specimen of Botrychium simplex Hitch, clinging to one 

 of the plants. I was naturally delighted, for no specimens of this 

 plant were known from Ohio although the name was on the State 

 list. I returned to the place and soon found the plants in abun- 

 dance. A little farther on I found Botrychium neglectum Wood, 

 also in abundance. This was another rare Ohio plant, being 

 known onlv from a few localities in the north-eastern part of 

 the state. Then I concluded that there certainly must be others. 

 So a little search brought to light Botrychium obliquum Spreng. 

 besides Botrychium virginianum, which was on the Cedar Point 

 list, being quite common. No more Botrychiums were found 

 although I thought there should be others, but the search, made 

 partly on hands and 'knees, ended with adding Ophioglossum 

 vulgatum L. to the collection. This made six of the Ophio- 

 glossaceae growing in an area not over two rods in diameter. 



Not only were the sporophytes found but gametophvtes of 

 all the species were dug up. These were mostly located by the 

 tiny juvenile sporophytes projecting above the surface of the 

 soil. Botrychium dissectum has the first tiny leaf of the typical 

 shape. A whole series of juvenile stages was seen without the 

 slightest indication of a generalized tvpe of leaf. I naturallv 

 supposed that the first leaf would have some of the characters 

 of Botrychium obliquum of which species it is by soine thought 

 to be a variety or form. The plants could, however, not be more 

 clearly defined. They show the specific character from the 

 beginning. This seemed especiallv interesting since so commonly 

 there is a very decided similaritv of juvenile forms in closely 

 related species. 



The place is an open thicket of Rhus hirta and other small 

 trees and shrubs. The scil is sandv and rich in humus, parti v 

 dry and partly swampy. It is hoped that notwithstanding its 

 nearness to the summer resort, this habitat will be undisturbed for 



