Petrie. — New Native Phanerogams. 55 



12. Uncinia strictissima (Kiikenth.) Petrie comb, now 



This is the plant described by me in the " Transactions of the New 

 Zealand Institute."' vol. 17. p. '271. under the name U. rigida. That 

 name proved to be preoccupied, having been previously applied by 

 Boeckeler to a species from Tristan da Cunha. I am unable to regard it 

 as a variety of U. rubra Boott. a view that commends itself to Cheeseman 

 as well as to Kiikenthal. The opinions of the latter have vacillated in 

 a remarkable way in the course of his investigation of this genus, and at 

 one stage in their development he went so far as to place U. rubra Boott as 

 a variety of U. riparia B. Br. 



The characteristics of this plant are well set out in Cheeseman's 

 description of his var. rigida of U. rubra Boott. The characters that 

 separate it from U. rubra appear to me more decided and more constant 

 than are those distinguishing most of the species of this difficult genus. 

 Of these the most important are the green colour of the subaerial parts, 

 the rather stout terete rigid culms that greatly elongate in fruiting, the 

 rigid erect deeply grooved leaves, the constantly bracteate spikes, the 

 bristle always shorter than the utricle, and the densely compacted rush- 

 like tufted habit of growth. 



The range of the species is now better known. It extends from the 'base 

 of Jack's Pass (Amuri County) to Stewart Island, and occurs also on the 

 Auckland Islands, where it was collected in 1890 by Mr. F. R. Chapman. 

 Dr. L. Cockayne, F.R.S., in his "Report on the Stewart Island Flora," 

 recognizes the plant as a valid species. 



13. Carex chathamica sp. nov. 



Culmi ad 6 dcm. longi erecti leves triquetri moderate robusti. 



Folia culmis breviora plana 8 mm. lata levia, supra 3-nervata. subtus 

 striata ac costa media conspicua, basi haud vaginante. 



Spiculae plerurnque 7 simplices, summae tres masculae sessiles confertae, 

 reliquae femineae v. floribus paucis masculis apice instructae, pedunculatae 

 erectae ad 6 cm. longae distantes longe vaginatae, superioribus pedunculos 

 gradatim breviores praebentibus ; bracteis longis foliosis, superioribus 

 gradatim abbreviatis. 



Glumae 6 mm. longae anguste lineari-lanceolatae acutae v. acuminatae 

 integrae v. apice leviter bifidae membranaceae 1-nervatae. 



Utxiculi glumis breviores + 3 mm. longi turgide biconvexi conspicue 

 2-nervati aliter enervii brunnei politi nitentes breviter stipitati, supra in 

 rostrum breve glaberrimum subobscure bidentatum subito contracti. 



Nux late ovata, supra obtuse trigona. Stigmata 3. 



Culms 6 dcm. high or less, erect or inclined at the top, smooth, tri- 

 quetrous, moderately stout. 



Leaves shorter than the culms, flat, 8 mm. broad, smooth, slightly 

 thickened at the edges and finely serrate towards the gradually narrowed 

 tips, 3-nerved above, below striate with conspicuous midrib, the base not 

 sheathing and marked off by a conspicuous oblique purplish ligule. 



Spikelets usually 7 simple (very rarely with a small secondary spikelet 

 at the base), the 3 (rarely 4) topmost male, rather slender, sessile, and 

 closely placed, the others female or with a few male flowers at the top, 

 erect, distant, the lowermost with long peduncles, the higher with peduncles- 



