Edgerley. — Prothallia of Three New Zealand Lycopods. 109 



The Young Sporophyte. 



A glance at figs. 23 to 31 will show that the young sporophyte may 

 remain attached to the prothallium for a long time. Thus sporophytes 

 with four or five leaves and a young root may still be attached to a 

 prothallium. The first-formed leaves are never scaly, since they are pro- 

 duced above the surface of the humus. Even after the young plant has 

 become detached from the prothallium the foot may be distinguished on 

 it (fig. 29). In no case was more than one sporophyte developed on a 

 single branch of the prothallium. 



A section through the basal part of a young sporophyte still attached 

 to a prothallium shows a fairly large foot composed of parenchymatous 

 cells, with its outer row of cells characterized by thick walls and more 

 abundant contents. In fig. 36 the suspensor is seen, which consists of only 

 a few cells. No trace of a protocorm was found. Fig. 37 shows a young 

 sporophyte with only a single leaf developed. 



Fungus. 



Apparentlv similar to that of L. volubile, but no nucleated vesicles 

 were observed. On the other hand, cells with dark spore-like bodies were 

 very common (fig. 32). 



Summary. 



The results obtained in this investigation may be summarized as 

 follows : — . 



(1.) The spores of L. Billardieri and L. novae-zelandicum Colenso, like 

 those of many other species of Lycopodium, do not germinate readily- 

 After a period of five months there was no sign of germination. 



(2.) The prothallia of L. volubile and L. scariosum resemble one another 

 externally, but that of L. scariosum is larger. Both are usually colourless 

 and saprophytic, but prothallia of L. volubile may come above the surface. 



The prothallia of L. Billardieri, like those of other epiphytic species, 

 closely resemble those of L. phlegmaria. 



(3.) Internal Form of Prothallia. — In a general way, both L. volubile 

 and L. scariosum resemble L. clavatum, but L. scariosum, differs, from both 

 L. volubile and L. clavatum in the small proportion of its cells in which 

 the fungus is found, the infected tissue being only about a sixth of the 

 whole prothallium in L. scariosum, while about a half in L. volubile and 

 L. clavatum. L. scariosum resembles both L. clavatum and L. annotinum 

 in having a single row of cells elongated at right angles to the surface on 

 the prothallium, and having the fungus intracellular. This layer is absent 

 in L. volubile. Again, in the layer of cells marked (c) in L. volubile and 

 (d) in L. scariosum the fungus is intercellular only in L. scariosum, and 

 both inter- and intra-cellular in L. volubile. 



The internal structure of L. Billardieri closely resembles that of L. 

 phlegmaria, but in L. Billardieri no pits were seen in the walls of the 

 elongated central cells as described by Treub in L. phlegmaria, though the 

 pits in the walls of the peripheral layer were very conspicuous. 



(4.) Starch was abundant in both L. volubile and L. scariosum in the 

 parenchymatous storage layer. In L. volubile it was quite absent from 

 the layer below this ; but in L. scariosum the walls of the cells showed 

 a light-blue colour when treated with iodine, showing possibly that the 

 fungus filaments in the wall contain starch. 



(5.) Fungus was present in all three species. In L. volubile the fungus 

 does not enter the rhizoids, but pierces the wall of the basal cell of the 



