﻿67O CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIKNCKS. 



however, that its hasty publication prevented a proper ex- 

 amination of the literature on the species. 



Astragalus Chamaleuce Gray. This name belongs to the 

 Phaca pygmcea of Nuttall, but so far I can find no one who 

 knows what that species is. The only character that seems 

 assured is the habitat which is " Rocky Mountains, on the 

 hills of Ham's Fork of the Colorado of the West," which 

 means Ham's Fork, southwest Wyoming, on the northern 

 slopes of the Uinta Mountains. So far as the description 

 goes this might be some form of A. amfhioxys, A. cica- 

 da, or A. glareosus. The forms collected by me have 

 all been referred by others to . 1 . glarcosus, but an ex- 

 amination of authentic material of the latter species shows 

 that my plants are not A. glareosus. They are identical 

 with Watson's A. Chamaleuce Bot. King's Exp. 74. The 

 stems are woody, flat on the ground, as if rooting; pods 

 very variable, always pubescent, but sometimes sparsely so, 

 walls fleshy and pulpy, 1" thick, ventral suture thick and 

 barely if at all intruded, a trifle sulcate ventrally, usually 

 flattish on the dorsal suture, cross-section oval, the pod 

 being obcompressed, usually 3" thick and 4" wide, vertical 

 longitudinal section oblong and arcuate, 9" or more long, 

 horizontal longitudinal section oval-ovate to ovate, pods 

 seldom over an inch long, jointed to a very short stipe, 

 but often very deeply sulcate ventrally and even dorsally 

 at base, the inner wall is thick and woody, but the outer 

 is soft pulpy, cavity is full of hairs, showing that it is 

 filled with juice during part of its growth, the cavity is 

 double the width of the seeds when they are green; 

 calyx i" thick, 1" wide and 4" long, hyaline, thicker at 

 base, cleft deeper above and lower teeth the longer. For 

 further notes see my Contributions 3, 294. Should this 

 prove to be distinct from A. Chaviteleuce as is quite likely 

 it may bear the name of A . Uintensis. 



