472 Palaeontologie. — Cryptogamen im Allgemeinen. 



A specimen of a cast of an indubitable male flower of William- 

 sonia gigas from near Whitby preserved in the Yates collection 

 in the Paris museum is described. The 'flower' seems to have been 

 composed of 18 — 20 microsporophylls united to form a cup-like 

 structure. Down the centre of each sporophyll forming the cup, was 

 a series of closely approximated conspicuous depressions, elliptical 

 or reniform in shape. These structures are probably to be compared 

 with the depressions figured by Prof. Nathorst in W. whitbiensis 

 as corresponding to rudimentary synangia; in the present case, 

 however, only a Single row of Ihese depressions is seen. 



There is strong evidence that the present flower belongs to 

 W. gigas. Three alternate views have been held as to the original 

 Position and origin of these male flowers. One view would regard 

 them as originating in a bisexual flower of the same type as that 

 of Cycadeoidea ingens with the male sporophylls borne below the 

 female strobilus. This view is held to be untenable for the present 

 specimen. The second view of the possible origin of the microspo- 

 rophylls would see them arising above the ovulate portion of the 

 flower and in the position in which Lignier has placed his 'ap- 

 pendice infundibuliforme'. This view is very unlikely to be a cor- 

 rect one for all the bisexual Bennettialean flowers already known, 

 i. e. Cycadeoidea , Wielandiella and Williamsoniella, have their micro- 

 sporophylls below the megasporophylls. The third view is that the 

 structure was a separate 'flower' produced on its own stalk, and 

 independent of the female strobilus. The author believes in this 

 unisexual theory and regards the structure described as an inde- 

 pendent male flower of Willianisonia gigas. These unisexual flowers 

 may have originated from bisexual flowers, and the form Wielan- 

 diella^ described by Nathorst, doubtless indicates a stage in the 

 reduction of a completely bisexual flower to one in which the ovu- 

 late portion only was fully developed, the microsporophylls being 

 very much reduced and delayed in development. 



W. B. Turrill (Kew). 



Cotton, A. D., Crj^ptogams from the Falkland Islands 

 collected by Mr. Valien tin. (Journ. Linn. Soc. Bot. XLIII. 

 p. 137—231. PI. 4-10. Nov. 1915.) 



The present paper gives a complete and revised list of the 

 algae,Tichens and fungi known from the Falkland Islands. It 

 is based on recent collections made by JVlr. R. Valien tin, but as 

 in the case of the list of the Flowering Plants (Journ. Linn. Soc. 

 XXXIX. p. 313) and the Mosses and Ferns to be published shortly, 

 all old records have been also dealt with. 



In the early part of the paper some general notes and ecological 

 observations by Mr. Valien tin are recorded and this is foUowed 

 by an account of the botanical history of the islands especially as 

 to the cryptogams. 



The flora is then analysed phytogeographically, the problems 

 presented discussed and the following conclusions are reached. The 

 marine algal flora of the magellan region is a subantarctic one of 

 a distinct South American type. Many of the species composing it 

 appear to be confined to subantarctic America, a large number 

 are also found in the South Indian region of the subantarctic of 

 which Kerguelen is typical, and a small proportion only from 

 the subantarctic islands of New Zealand. In the same way the 



