1923] Proceedings of the Academy of Science 11 



for the pure culture of diatoms. It was pointed out that the bac- 

 teriological method as well as other previous methods were unsatis- 

 factory since one could not be absolutely certain that cultures w^ere 

 pure due to the fact that diatoms are able to migrate over agar even 

 when it is quite solid. It seemed advisable therefore to start cultures 

 from a single individual, segregated by a modified Barber's pipette 

 which has been previously described.* This was done in May last 

 year. Transplants Avere made from these cultures and some fifty 

 tubes have been secured, containing thousands of diatoms each. This 

 technique should make possible an absolutely accurate method for the 

 stud}' of variation in the marking of the shells of diatoms, and may 

 possibly show that some species are to be looked upon as variants 

 rather than as distinct species. It is perhaps needless to say that this 

 work should be carried on with bacteriological accuracy, and that the 

 nutrient agar should be filtered before using since agar usually con- 

 tains diatom shells. This method also makes possible a study of the 

 physiology of the diatoms. 



Some of the Hepaticae of North Carolina. H. L. Blomquist. 



A report on a survey of the liverwort flora of the western half of 

 the state extending over a period of less than one year. Out of the 

 ninety-six genera occurring in the United States, Canada, and Alaska, 

 thirty-seven were located in this region of North Carolina during that 

 time. The largest number of genera collected belong to the order 

 Jungermanniales, or leaf}^ liverworts. The Marchantiales are not so 

 well represented and are rather local in distribution. In the Ricci- 

 aceae family, Riccia sorocarpa Bisch seems to be the most widely dis- 

 tributed, occurring during the winter months in clay fields together 

 with Sphaerocarpus texanus Aust. The most common of the Mar- 

 chantiaceae in the Piedmont region is AstereUa tenella which occurs on 

 low clay fields together with Anthoceros laevis. The rarest leafy liver- 

 wort located is Metzgeria furcata var. ulvula. This was collected on 

 Eno River near Durham and identified by Miss Lorenz who says that 

 in her extensive collecting she has obtained it only once. Below is a 

 list of the genera reported : 



CunninKham, B. A Modified Barber Pipette. Trans. Anier. Mic. Soc. 41: 55. 



