RANDOM NOTES ON NA.TUBAL HISTORY. 



83 



The Native Trees of Rhode Island. 



BY L. W. RUSSELL. 



No. VII. 



Quercus coccinea — Scarlet Oak. 



Q. coccinea, or the scarlet oak, is fre- 

 quentl\- met with in Rhode Island. It 

 grows in compan}' willi the black oak, Q. 

 tmctoria, to which it is closely related. In- 

 deed, in a grove of the two kinds, they 

 pass into each other by such fine grada- 

 tions that it is only by a few points of dis- 

 tinction that they can be distinguished from 

 each other. 



It is one of the handsomest of our native 

 oaks, more noticeable for its graceful, 

 shapely growth than for the strength and 

 sturdlness which characterize most of the 

 oaks. 



Upon open grounds it forms a somewhat 

 stately, orbicular head. The limbs are nu- 

 merous, long, and, for an oak, rather slen- 

 der, dividing into fine branchlets, which 

 give an airy lightness to the aspect of the 

 tree. The trunk is usually straight and 

 covered with a bluish gray bark, divided, 

 but not deeply, by short clefts. The bark 

 is not as thick as that of the black oak, not 

 so dark, nor so deeply cleft. The inner 

 portion of the bark is of a pink or reddish 

 tinge, while that of the black oak is yellow. 

 The buds are conical, obtusely pointed, and 

 smaller than those of the black oak. The 

 leaves are smaller, more deepl3' cleft, and 

 thinner than those of the black oak. In 

 the autumn, they are of a brilliant scarlet 

 and form one of the most attractive beau- 

 ties of the woods. 



The acorn is small, nearly globose, but 

 somewliat lengthened, deeply set in the 

 cup, which has large, close scales, that ter- 

 minate abruptly, without fringe. The ker- 

 nel is white and much less bitter than 

 that of the black oak. The wood is in- 

 ferior, both as fuel and timber, to that of 

 the black oak, with which it is commonly 

 confounded, except by close observers. 



Although not the most stately of our 

 oaks, it is a rapid gr<)vvi;r, and on account of 

 its beauty at all seasons, and especially in 

 the autumn, it is deserving of cultivation as 

 a shade and ornamental tree. 



This tnre renches a high degree of perfec- 

 tion in Rhode Island. In its distribution, 



it occupies the same regions as the black 

 oak, the latter being regarded by recent 

 botanists as simply a variety of the scarlet 

 oak. 



There are a number of fine scarlet oaks, 

 of well-marked characteristics, by the road- 

 side leading from Olneyville to Dyer's 

 nursery ; and in the grove opposite to the 

 entrance to the grounds mav be found some 

 specimens j.mi; interesting varieties of the 

 black and wcarlet oaks. It may be here 

 properly mentioned that the groves and 

 river banks in the vicinit}' of Mr. Dyer's 

 residence ,7ffer a noteworthy variety of 

 finel^'-developed native forest trees. 



Reptiles and BatracMans of Rhode Island. 



BY HERMON C. BUMPUS. 



Number XIV. 



2. Hajiacatesbiana Shaw. (Ranapipienn 

 Linn. The Bull Frog is the largest anurous 

 Batrachian of North America, specimens 

 having been known which measured twenty- 

 one inches in length. Though the larger 

 representatives of the succeeding species are 

 often confused with this animal, a full-grown 

 Bull Frog, with all its independence, thought- 

 ful air, and perfect composure, is never to be 

 mistaken. Lest, however, the more imma- 

 ture representatives be mistaken for their 

 more plebeian associates, a few characteris- 

 tic points, which will determine their iden- 

 tity, will perhaps be acceptable to the 

 novice. 



The most striking difference is in the so- 

 called cuticular folds : a pair of ridges 

 passing posteriorly from the back of the 

 eye, over the tympanic membrane. These 

 folds in the Green Frog continue as far as 

 the last vertebra, outlining in their course 

 the position of the distal ends of the trans- 

 verse processes of the several vertebrae. 

 In the Bull Frog these folds stop soon after 

 passing the large drumhead-like areas behind 

 the eyes — the tympanic membranes. The 

 Bull Frog is also without the underlying 

 metallic tint generally characteristic of the 

 Green Frog. Other differences in color are 

 misleading and cannot be relied upon for 

 specific determination. The color and even 

 the marking being likely to vary in either 

 species. 



I have captured specimens of the Bull 



