310 SALMON: SOME SPECIES OF ECTROPOTHECIUM 
Hookeria praelonga W. Arnott, from Rio de Janeiro, which has 
been referred to £. vesiculare, proves to be a species of Actropothe- 
cium allied to, if not identical with, Z. amphibolum Spruce. 
As regards “ Hypnum Montagnei Schimp.” the following plants 
have been sent out under the number 720 in Wright’s Cuban 
Mosses. In Mitten’s herbarium and in the Kew herbarium three 
distinct plants appear under the number 720, viz., &. vestculare 
(Schwaegr.), £. vesiculare Poeppigianum (Hampe), and £. cras- 
sicaule Mitt. In Miiller’s herbarium both &. vesiculare and the 
variety Poeppigianum are found under the number 720. The 
plant quoted by Mitten, ‘ Wright, inter 120,” as belonging to £. 
amphibolum Spruce proves to be &. vesiculare. The plant, “n. 
120 ex parte” in Mitten’s herbarium, on which Mitten founded his 
E. flavoviride is a form of the variety Poeppigianum ; while £. 
crassicaule Mitt. founded also on ‘‘n. 120 ex parte’’ proves, as men- 
tioned above, to be a distinct species. It may be mentioned here 
that from Montagne’s original description of “ H. Montagnei”’ the 
plant appears to be Z. vesiculare Poeppigianum ; specimens from 
Montagne’s herbarium, however, are £. vesiculare type. 
The result of the above investigations shows how necessary it 
is in the first place, in describing the moss-flora of any country, 
to examine types and historical specimens in herbaria in order to 
remove the errors which have accumulated round certain species. 
My sincere thanks are due to the authorities at the Berlin 
Museum and the Herbier Boissier for kindly allowing me to see 
specimens from, respectively, Miiller’s and Schwaegrichen’s her- 
baria; to Mr. William Mitten, A.L.S., for kindly sending me 4 
large number of specimens of Ectropothecium from his herbarium ; 
and to Professor F. O. Bower, F.R.S., for allowing me to examine 
a specimen from Walker-Arnott’s herbarium. 
I give below diagnoses drawn up from the examination of the 
type and authentic specimens, and the revised synonymy and dis- 
tribution. In the study of the species of this difficult genus 
Ectropothecium the shape and areolation of the ventral branch- 
Jeaves afford important specific characters. By paying attention 
to these points the two species F. vesiculare (Schwaegt.) and £. 
amphibolum Spruce, which are both variable species and often 
closely resemble each other, can be at once separated. 
