1 68 MOSSES AND FERNS chap. 



both in its position and shape recalls strongly that of such 

 a foliose Liverwort as Porella. 



The development of the spermatozoids has been carefully 

 followed by Guignard/ and corresponds in the main with that 

 of the Hepaticae. A peculiar feature is the presence of a pear- 

 shaped amylaceous mass, firmly attached to the posterior coil. 

 This becomes evident at a very early stage in the development 

 and remains unchanged up to the time the spermatozoids are 

 liberated (Fig. 79, D). The vesicle in which it is enclosed 

 collapses, leaving only the large starch granule, which finally 

 becomes detached. The free spermatozoid has about two com- 

 plete coils, and in form recalls that of Chm^a. The cilia are 

 two and somewhat exceed in length the body. 



The ripe antheridium is surrounded by a weft of fine 

 branching hairs, which Schimper suggests serve to supply it 

 with moisture.^ It opens by a number of irregular lobes (Fig. 

 79, C), precisely as in Porella, and, like that, the swelling of the 

 cells is often so great that some of them become entirely 

 detached. Schimper states that antheridia may be formed at 

 any time, but they are more abundant in the late autumn and 

 winter. 



The archegonia are found at the apex of some of the 

 short branches at the summit of the plant, and externally are 

 indistinguishable from the sterile branches. The development 

 of the archegonia has not been followed completely, but to 

 judge from the stages that have been observed and the mature 

 archegonium, its structure and development correspond closely 

 to that of the other Mosses. As in these, and the acrogy- 

 nous Hepaticae, the apical cell of the branch becomes an arche- 

 gonium, and a varying number of secondary archegonia arise 

 from its last - formed segments. The mature archegonium 

 has a massive basal part and long somewhat twisted neck, 

 consisting of six rows of cells. As in the other Mosses, the 

 growth of the young archegonium is apical, and probably as 

 there the neck canal cells are formed as basal segments of 

 the apical cell, and the ventral canal cell is cut off from the 

 central cell in the usual way. The venter merges gradually 

 into the neck above and the pedicel below, and at maturity 

 its wall is two or three cells thick. The &%% '^ is ovoid, and 



1 Guignard (i), p. 69. ^ These are probably the hyphse of a fungus. 



•' Waldner (2). 



