656 CONIFERZ. [Dacrydium. 
pressed, about 4, in. long, enclosed for 4 of their length or more in 
a lax cup-shaped aril.— Pilger in Pflanzenreich, iv. 5, 51. OD. 
Westlandicum, 7. Kirk in Trans. N.Z. Inst. x. (1878) 387, t. 18; 
Forest Fl. t. 85; Hook. f. Ic. Plant. t. 1218. 
Nortu Istanp: Between Mongonui and Kaitaia, Carse! Whangaroa, 
Hector ! between the Bay of Islands and Whangarei, Colenso; Great Barrier 
Island, Kirk! Waimarino Forest, Kirk! SourH Istanp: Not uncommon 
along the West Coast from Collingwood to Martin’s Bay, Kirk! Spencer! 
Townson! Brame! Helms! &e. Sea-level to 3000 ft. Silver-pine ; 
Monoao. 
Very close to the preceding ;e but the leaves of the young trees are much 
flatter, more decurrent, and often distichous ; the mature leaves are smaller and 
the branchlets more slender; and the nuts are smaller, often 2 together, and 
are enclosed sometimes almost as far as the middle in the unusually well- 
developed aril. The wood is yellowish- white, straight-grained, strong and 
compact, very durable. It is exported from Westland to all parts of the colony 
for railway-sleepers, and has been used with good results for the framework of 
bridges, wharves, &c. 
D. Colensoi is a species which has been much misunderstood. By nearly 
all writers the name has been applied to the mountain-plant originally described 
by Sir W. J. Hooker in the ‘‘ Icones Plantarum”’ (t. 544) as Podocarpus(?) biformis, 
the Dacrydium biforme of this work, although the two species are in reality 
totally different. The mistake appears to have originated in the ‘‘ Flora Nove 
Zealandiz,” where Sir J. D. Hooker quoted Podocarpus(?) biformis as a syno- 
nym of D. Colensoi. His description is based entirely on D. biforme, and 
the localities given (Dusky Bay, Menzies; Tongariro and Ruahine Mountains, 
Colenso; mountains near Nelson, Bidwill) all unquestionably refer to the same 
plant. It is curious that, although the original plate of D. Colensoi is cited in 
the Flora, no reference is given to the locality in which the species was first 
discovered. From a letter of Mr. Colenso’s sent with the type specimens, and 
published in the London Journal of Botany (Vol. i. p. 301), this appears to have 
been the rough forest country between Whangarei and the Bay of Islands—a 
station quite 250 miles to the north of the northern limit of D. biforme. Early 
in the preparation of this work a comparison of the original descriptions and 
figures convinced me that, although the plate of Podocarpus(?) biformis was 
a very faithful representation of the plant to which all New Zealand botanists, 
following the example of Sir J. D. Hooker, at that time assigned the name of 
Colensoi, it by no means corresponded with the original plate of D. Colensot. 
Not only did the two plants differ in a marked degree in habit and foliage, but 
the figures given of the fruit of D. Colensoi were so unlike that of D. biforme as 
to make their specific distinctness beyond all doubt. It therefore became 
necessary to restore Podocarpus(?) biformis to the rank of a species under the 
name of D. biforme. Further study of the original plate of D. Colensoi made it 
clear that two subsequently described species—D. intermedium and D. West- 
landicum—were evidently close allies, intermediwm so far as the foliage was 
concerned, Westlandicum with respect to the fruit. Under these circumstances 
I applied to Kew with the object of having these two plants compared with the 
type specimens, but, unfortunately, it was found that the latter were no longer 
in the herbarium. About this time Dr. Pilger, of Berlin, took up the study of 
the Taxace@ for ‘‘ Das Pflanzenreich.’’ Fortunately he found one of Colenso’s 
original specimens in the Imperial Herbarium at Vienna. He has thus been 
able to compare it with the other New Zealand species, and has satisfied him- 
self that it is identical with D. Westiandicum. I willingly accept this determi- 
nation, although D. Westlandicum usually has much more slender branches 
than those figured in the original plate. I am also glad to take this opportunity 
of referring New Zealand students to Dr. Pilger’s memoir, which contains 
carefully prepared descriptions of the whole of the New Zealand Taxads, and 
much valuable information respecting them. 
