102 THE NATURAL HISTORY REYIEW. 



Mr. Miers reviews the genera and species of a tribe of Liliacece, 

 to whieli Don, in 1832, gave tlie name of Conantherece. From this 

 group Miers excludes the genus PasifJiea, while, on the other hand, 

 he would refer to it Teco^liilea of Colla, which Dr. Leybold makes 

 the type of a new order, between Liliacew and Iridacece. Bistrepta, 

 Miers (1825), Poppigia, Kunze (1828), non Bert, nee PresL, and 

 PhygmUhus, Popp (1838), are shown to be synonyms oi Tecophilea. 

 The other genera are Zephyr a, Conantliera, Cmmningia, and Cyanella. 

 The floral characters of all these are represented on a single plate. 



To the same group probably belongs the new genus Walleria, of 

 which Dr, Kirk describes two species. The structure of its fruit 

 is unknown. The ovary is free or very slightly immersed : in other 

 characters the flowers resemble those of the Conantlierece^ the stamens 

 opening just as in OonantJiera itself. Dr. Kirk adds the following 

 " diagnostic table of 



Genera of the Conantheroijs Liliace^. 



I. Ovary semi-adherent ; stamens unequal. 



1. Zephyr a^ Dav. Stamens 2 abortive; anthers opening by a 



terminal pore, spurred at base. 



2. Cyanella^ Linn. Stamens all fertile, one enlarged, pen- 



dulous. 



II. Ovary semi-adherent ; stamens equal. 



3. Conunthera, Euiz and Pav. Perianth 6-parted ; anthers 



connate, opening by pores, ending in a single arista. 



4. Cummingia, Dav. Perianth campanulate ; anthers connate, 



opening by pores, ending in a double arista. 



5. Pasithea, Dav. Stamens free, opening by longitudinal valves 



the length of the anther. 



III. Ovary free ; stamens equal. 



6. Walleria, Kirk. Stamens opening by pores ; perianth 



6-parted." 



The geographical distribution of these genera is interesting. 

 Walleria is from the mountains of Eastern tropical Africa ; Cyanella, 

 known to Linneus, from the Cape of Grood Hope. The remaining 

 Conantherece are South American. 



An arrangement of the zoological memoirs contained in this 

 volume under two heads, the descriptive and the more abstract, 

 would appear arbitrary. More nalurally do those papers fall into 



