Underwood: American ferns 593 



Guadeloupe places the New York Botanical Garden in possession 

 of the most complete series of plants from those islands that has 

 ever been brought together. Specimens of Stenochlaena in this 

 herbarium, as well as older collections from Martinique seen in 

 European herbaria, when compared with the recent extensive 

 collections in the island of Jamaica, have enabled us clearly to 

 differentiate the plant of the Lesser Antilles, which extends also 

 into Porto Rico and Hispaniola, from the Jamaican plant, more or 

 less common in the hill region of that island. 



Each one of the species described or recognized in this paper 

 has a very definite geographic area as determined from a study of 

 practically all the material that has yet been collected. The spe- 

 cies are most abundantly represented in our own collections, but 

 the materials at Vienna, Prague, Berlin, Paris, Kew, Washington 



and New Haven have contributed type specimens and additional 

 information. 



The American species which we recognize may be separated 

 by the following synopsis : 



Pinnae tapering gradually in the lower third, truncate-acuminate at 



the apex ; sporophyllary pinnae narrow (3-4 mm.). 12. S. Wrightii. 



Pinnae blunt or cuneate at base, but never long-tapering below. 



8. S. Prieuriana 



5. S. japurensis. 



Pinnae mostly 2-4 cm. wide ; sporophyllary pinnae 7-16 mm. 



wide. 



Pinnae few (i~5)- 



Pinnae more numerous ( 7-20 or more) . 



Sporophyllary pinnae 12-16 mm. wide ; scales of the 

 rootstock and bases of the leaf-stalks brownish- 

 black. 

 Sporophyllary pinnae 7-8 mm. wide. 



Scales of the rootstock and bases of the leaf-stalks 

 narrowly lanceolate, ferruginous ; sporophyl- 

 lary pinnae mostly 12 cm. long. 2. S. erythrodes. 

 Scales of the rootstock and bases of the leaf-stalks 

 broad, ovate, pallid ; sporophyllary pinnae 

 shorter, 6-9 cm., stalked. 4. S. jatnaicensis. 

 Pinnae normally under 2 cm. wide ; sporophyllary pinnae 



under 5 mm. wide (except in no. 7). 

 Pinnae irregularly sharply serrate, not over I cm. wide, 



cuneate at the base. 6. 5. Kunzeana. 



Pinnae entire, undulate, or slightly and uniformly serru- 

 late or denticulate. 

 Pinnae truncate at the base. 



Pinnae 7-8 cm. or more long; sporophyllary 



pinnae 3 mm. wide. 3- $• Fcndleri* 



