218 166 



distinct species there remains a good number of forms, which I refer to a single 

 species, D. repZans. Although very different in habit and size they show some common 

 characters: 1) the long radicant apex of some leaves, 2) the pubescence of the surfaces, 

 especially the upper one, by forked hairs, '3) the glabrous sporangia; the head of 

 the sporangia appears always to be glabrous, bat the pedicel often bears a single 

 hair; the receptacle is as a rule setose by long hairs, which often are longer than 

 the sporangia, 4) the presence of a small indusium consisting af a few cells bearing 

 long simple or forked hairs. — In develojjed fronds the lower pair of veins, which 

 spring out from the secondary vein 1 — 2 mm above its base, are goniopteroid and 

 send a branch to the sinus; in young leaves the veins are sometimes all free. The 

 rhizome is erect, clothed at the top with proportionally few glossy, brown, stellato- 

 pubescent scales. Stipites fasciculated, slender, stramineous. Lamina generally 

 herbaceous but frequently charlaceous or even coriaceous, more or less hairy on 

 rachis and ribs by long, simple hairs. Most pinnæ short-stalked, the lower ones 

 not or slightly reduced, the margins cut into shallow rounded lobes or subentire. 

 Veins 2 — 5 to a side, not very prominent beneath. Sori below the middle of the 

 vein. As to size and shape of leaves and pinnæ nothing can be said, which agrees 

 even with two specimens from the same locality. II seems that leaves from same 

 rhizome but of different age vary very much. 



Maxon has recently tried to show that the right name of this species is D. 

 radicans (L), It is illustrated by Sloane pi. 29 and 80 fig. 1 and by Plukenet 

 pi. 253 fig. 4, which plates were cited by Linnæus under his first description of 

 Asplenium radicans (Syst. Nat. ed. X. 3: 1323. HoQ), as well as by Swartz under his 

 P. replans. If Linnæus really founded his Asplenium radicans (= Aspl. radicans of 

 my Index) on Sloane's plate, Maxon is certainly right in changing the name, but 

 we have here a case, which exactly corresponds with that af Asplenium erosum L., 

 which name Maxon uses for the well-known A. auritum Sw. This lat er case I 

 have dealt with in some detail in my paper on Swartz's species of ferns (Arkiv 

 for Bot. 9": 14—17). It is right that Linn.eus under the first description of his 

 Aspl. radicans quoted the said plates only; but in Spec, plant, ed. II. 154U. 1763, 

 where the name is changed to Aspl. rliizophtjllum. he immediately after the 

 description cites "Brown. Jam. 92". This additional citation is important, because 

 it proves that Linnæus founded his species on dried specimens, not on Sloane's 

 plates. Linnæus bought namely, in the year 1758 a collection of Jamaican plants 

 gathered by P. Browne, and described in Browne's work on Jamaica. This work 

 from 1758 Linnæus did not know during the pre|)aration of the tenlh edition of 

 Systema Naturœ and therefore it could not, of course, be cited in this edition. It is 

 natural that Linnæus tried to determine Browne's specimens by aid of Sloane's 

 and Plukenet's works, and when finding a plate, which he believed to illustrate 

 the species, he (juoted that plate. Knowing Browne's work while preparing the 

 second edition of Species plantarum he then always cited this work l)efore the 

 citations given in 1759 and always immediately after the description, which proves 



