40 Dansk Botanisk Arkiv, Bd. 2. Nr. 6. 



not differ in any important point from the other cells, and 

 to me they appear to be only cells produced by a more or less 

 irregular tangential division of the epidermal cells. Around the 

 veins, especially around the middle vein, the leaves are more 

 than two layers thick, and air chambers are present around the 

 middle vein (Fig. 24). The lateral walls of the epidermal cells of 

 both surfaces are much undulated, less so above and under the 

 veins. 



2. Halophila spinulosa (R. Br.) Ascherson, 

 in Neumayer, Anleit. z. wiss. Beobacht. Reisen, 1. ed. (1875) 368; 3. ed. 

 (1905) 395; Bentham, Fl. Austr. VII (1878) 183; F. v. Müller, Sec. Census 

 Austr. PI. (1889) 193; Caulinia? spinulosa R. Brown, Prodr. Fl. Nov. Holland. 

 (1810) 339; F. v. Müller, Fragm. Phytogr. Austr, VIII (1872—74) 219 and 283. 



Many specimens of this rare species, which was not before 

 known from West Australia, were found cast ashore at Carnarvon 

 (31st Oct. 1914; No. 274); some specimens were sterile, others 

 bore male flowers (Fig. 25). 



The first more complete account of this species was given by 

 F.v.Müller in Fragm. VIII, 219. He described the vegetative 

 part of the plant and the fruit, but owing to a misinterpretation 

 of the thread-like apical prolongation of the fruit, he believed that 

 the plant had "stylo setaceo stigma simplex dimidio crassius 

 depressum gerente". No doubt he had only the fruit with its 

 long process before him, after the stigmas had withered and were 

 thrown off. His "depressed stigma" is the rudimentary perianth, 

 first seen by I.B.Balfour (I.e.) in H. ovalis; and arising from 

 it we must imagine the stigmas — probably three in number and 

 filiform as in other Halophila species. The above misinterpretation 

 led F. v. Müller to suggest a separate genus for the species in 

 question, but in an addition to the same volume (VIII) of his 

 "Fragmenta" he places it (p. 283) "juxta Halophilam". 



A good description of specimens from the same collection 

 was given by Bentham in Fl. Austr. (1. a). 



F. v. Müller did not find any male flower, and I have seen 

 no description of it at all. Bentham (1. c.) says: "Male flowers 

 unknown", while Ascherson (1905, 395) mentions "die nur unvoll- 

 kommen bekannte männliche Blüte", but gives no other information 

 about it. My material contained a number of shoots with male 

 flowers and thus enables me to give a full description of their 

 appearance. The vegetative parts of the plant also show several 

 points of interest which are included in the following description 

 of the whole plant. 



