316 University of California Puhlications in Botany ["^'ol. 10 



iStephaui, after his description of Plagiochila deltoidea Lindenb. 

 in his Sp. Hep. (Bull, de I'Herb. Boissier, ser. 2, vol. 4, no. 8, p. 783, 

 11)04), says: "This phmt probably does not occur in New Zealand 

 and has been confused with Plagiochila Howeana St." 



Lindenberg, the founder of P. deltoidea, gives Dusky Bay, New 

 Zealand, as the first station for it, then Tasmania. The Barbados 

 record maj' safely be deleted. 



Although no indication is given, I think we may assume that 

 the figures of P. deltoidea given on plate XXVII by Lindenberg in 

 his Spec. Hep. are taken from New Zealand specimens, for in his 

 notes on the species, he remarks that the Tasmanian form has 

 "minuteh^ denticulate leaves," probably constituting quite a distinct 

 species from our more modern standpoint. 



These figures undoubtedly represent Stephani's P. Howeana, 

 much more accurately than the P. deltoidea from Tasmania and other 

 countries. A careful re-examination of all my specimens named 

 P. deltoidea disclosed several inaccuracies. I have one from New 

 Zealand determined by Stephani which is P. Banksiana, and several 

 others named by him from New Zealand are his P. Howeana. Gepp 

 of the British Museum informs me that in a set of Exotic Hepaticae 

 received from Stephani there are 4 specimens from New Zealand 

 named P. deltoidea and none P. Howeana. 



There is no doubt in my mind that Stephani is right in distin- 

 guishing the New Zealand forms from those from Tasmania and 

 elsewhere ; the darker green color, the shorter, more quadrate outline 

 of the leaves, the more recurved antical margin of the leaves, the 

 smaller cells, are distinctive, but Stephani does not make this clear 

 in his descriptions. The narrow elongate ligneous-walled basal cells 

 give the leaves at their base a broad vittate appearance, while in 

 P. deltoidea they are large and roundish-quadrate with large trigones, 

 very similar to the other cells. These characters enable a student 

 to separate them readily, and although the proposal I am about to 

 make may seem somewhat unusual, I make P. Howeana Stephani a 

 synonym of P. deltoidea Lindenb. and propose for the Tasmanian 

 and other similar forms the name of P. neohowcana Pearson, so as 

 to retain the name of my valued friend, Dr. Marshall A. Howe, of 

 whom Stephani says, "the plant bears the name of the distinguished 

 North American botanist (the investigator of the California Hepatic 

 Flora)." 



