Ser. G0X0YL0SPEK:MK.E. ( 93 ) Fam. CKRAMIACEiE. 



CERAMIUM DECUERENS.— JT^fe. 



Gen, Char. — Froud filiform, single-tubed, articulated ; joints, and occasionally more or 

 less of the articulation, pervaded by coloured cells. Fructification of two kinds, on 

 distinct plants : 1. Favellre, roundish, with a pellucid limbus, and generally sur- 

 rounded at the base by an involucre of few short articulated spine-like ramuli ; 

 2. Tetraspores, more or less immersed in the ultimate ramuli. Name from 

 Kipajxos, ' ' a pitcher ; " but the name is not applicable to the fruit of any species 

 of the genus as now restricted. 



Ceramium decurrens. — Fronds rather stout, cyliudi-ical, attenuated 

 towards the points, much branched, main divisions dichotomous, with 

 scattered, simple or compound lateral branchlets ; articulations about as 

 broad as long at the base, upper twice or twice and a-half as broad as 

 long ; the coloured cellules extending to near the middle. 



CEKAMitrii decurrens.- — Harv. P. B. plate 276 ; Harv. Man. p. 162 ; Harv. 

 Syn. p. 131 ; Atlas, plate 51, fig. 231. 



Ceramium rubrum, var. a decurrens. — /. G. Agardh, Sp, Gen. Alg. vol. ii. p. 127. 



HoKMOCERAS dccurrens, /3 majus. — Kiitz. in Linn. vol. xv. p. 733 ; KiUz. Phyc. 

 Gen. p. 379 ; Sp. Alg. p. 675. 



Hab. — On the smaller AlgiB in tide-pools. Rare ? Annual. August. On the 

 Harbour at Torquay {Mrs. Griffiths, 1844) ; Largo, Fife, 1846 ; Ayrshire coast [Rev. 

 Dr. Landsiorough). 



Geogr. Dist. — Mediterranean Sea. 



Description. — Root, a very small spreading conical disc. Fronds 

 filiform, cylindrical, attenuated towards the points, three to six inches 

 long, one-sixth of a line in thickness, much branched ; main divisions 

 more or less regularly dichotomous, everywhere beset with few, scattered, 

 simple or three to four times divided ramuli. Articulations in the 

 lower part of the stem about as long or a little longer than broad, 

 gradually becoming shorter upwards, those at the points much shorter 

 than broad, and having the colom-ed cellules extending over the whole 

 of the articulation, except about one-fourth in the middle ; apices forked 

 and incui-ved. Substance " membranous, not very closely adhering to 

 paper." — Phyc. Brit. Colour, a rather pale purplish red, yellowish white 

 in decay. Fructification we have not seen. 



This species seems still to be very imperfectly understood in this 

 ■country. We have seen no specimens except those from Torquay, and 

 these without fruit, which, so far as we are aware, has not been fomid ou 



