quirements. Furthermore, it is almost inconceivable that 
they could produce hybrid offspring capable of finding 
suitable habitat for survival even if they were associated 
somewhat closely. Indeed, the fact that these two taxa 
remain distinct in this area supports their taxonomic 
separation. 
It should be noted that, although this work represents 
only a beginning of our understanding of the S. cernua 
complex, it does open an interesting possibility. Much, 
if not all, of the material from the North and West that 
has been referred to var. odorata is in actuality S. mag- 
nicamporum or introgressed S. cernua. This situation 
suggests that a re-evaluation of var. odorata is in order 
and may further clarify the status of this and other seg- 
regates of the S. cernua complex. 
ACKNOWLEDGMEN'S 
I would like to express my appreciation to the cu- 
rators of the many herbaria that lent specimens for this 
study. I am particularly indebted to Dr. Robert A. 
Evers for sharing his knowledge of the loess-bluff hill 
prairie ecology of Spiranthes magnicamporum, and for 
accompanying me to several stations of his discovery, 
including that which was later to be designated the type 
locality. [ also wish to thank Dr. Alan Haney and Dr. 
Leslie Garay for valuable discussions, and Dr. Richard 
kX. Schultes for assistance with the Latin description. 
