102 ON THE FOSSIL FLORA OF THE COAL DEPOSITS OF AUSTRALIA, 



According to Dr. Feistmantel there has been much doubt about 

 the position of these plants.* It is not a common genus, though 

 with us the specimens are so numerous. By Braun*j" it was placed 

 amongst ferns, but in the family Pachypterid^e. By Ettings- 

 hausen it was regarded as a conifer near Phyllocladus. Andrse 

 also placed it amongst conifers, but with Taxineoz with Pachyp- 

 teris.% Schenk classed it with Cycadopteridce. In the work of 

 Schimper referred to (vol. I., p. 494) the author takes Cycadop- 

 teris, Pachypteris, and Thinnfeldia, and places them all amongst 

 Neuropteridece, in which Dr. Feistmantel says he is probably right 

 adding " We have another systematic position of this genus by 

 M. Saporta ; in his Jurassic plants of France (Paleont. Francaise, 

 N. 8, p. 340, ff.) he placed Thinnfeldia amongst the Odontopter- 

 idece ; but I believe this is not quite right, unless the diagnosis of 

 Odontopteris (Brongniart) be altered, for we have in all known 

 species of Thinnfeldia, Ettingsh., a distinct costa merging in venules 

 on the apex, which does not occur in Odontopteris. There are 

 seven species described from Europe, viz : — T decurrens, Schenk, 

 speciosa, Ett, obtusa, Schenk ; rhomboidalis, Ett., saligna, Schenk, 

 laciniata, Schenk, and incisa, Saporta, all from Rluetic or Lias. 

 There are two described from India, viz. : — T. indica, Feistm., and 

 our common T. odontopteroides , Morr. 



? Thinnfeldia media, n. s. (an var. indica? F. loc. cit., 

 p. 87. PI. xxxix, fig. 1, la ; xlvi., fig. 1, 2, 2a ; also Records 

 Geol. Surv. Ind., ix., 2, p. 35, 1876 ; Pecopteris salicifolia, Old. 

 and Morr. Rajmahal Flora PL xxvii., fig. 2). Frond pinnatifid 

 or bi-pinnate (?), pinnae nearly opposite lanceolate, acuminate, on 

 the margin sinuate, the lower ones shorter, the upper more or less 

 nearly auricled, the lower ones more or less decurrent, the costa 

 dividing into many veins ; these veins are forked. Stalk thick 

 striated. This is the diagnosis of T. indica. 



* See vol. 1, Foss. Flora, Gond. Syst. Part 2, Jurasic (Liassic) Flora of 

 Rajmahal Group, p, 85 and 33, of the work, 34 of the part. 



t Braun verz. d. Petref. m. d. Kreiss z. B. 1840. k. k. Geol. Reichsanst. 

 Abh. II. 1855, p. 43. 



% Fl. d. Grensch, 1867, p. 105. 





