' NEW OR XOTEWOKTHY SPECIES. 15 



.-r 



slirub more recently named as new, "What is this?" "Wliilc 

 nt the Calaveras Big Trees last June, my friend Mr. Btdding, 

 -w^ell known in zoological circles as a keen observer and scrnpn- 

 lously faithful reporter of i)lKienomena, brought me one even- 

 ing from beyond the Stanislaus a buckthorn twig, and said, 



''I should like to know what you call that?" I answered; 

 '' HhmnuHS riihra., wliich 1 published as new not long ago/* 



The answer satisfied liim ; and he then informed me that he 

 had sent it to Dr. Kellogg a dozen years ago, and had received 

 from him the name ''i?. Californica^''^ which he was confident 

 it could not be, for ^'the berries are red, and not unpalatable." 

 The nauseating sweetness and slightly astringent taste of the 

 inviting-looking large black fruits of R, Californico may be 

 known to many a field naturalist The character of "dark 

 purple" for the berries of i?. rithra I have probably derived 

 from Mr. Sonne's notes. In the extreme they are likely to be 

 found dark red or red-purple, 



Mr. Sonne now assures me that he finds the seeds to be 

 very commonly three in each berry ; a mark which points to 

 an affinity for R. Purshiana. 



Rhamnus occidentalism Howell in herb. Professor Trelease 

 in his recent paper on the genus* makes reference to this as 

 merely a '' broad-leaved form" of R. Califonuca. The sj^eci- 

 mens distributed by Mr. Howell in 1887 did not convince me 

 that he had a distinct species ; but they had been gathered 

 while the shrub was not yet out of flower, nor the leaves well 

 matured. In a large lot of specimens gathered by the same 

 collector this year at a later date, what I consider an indispu- 

 table specific character comes out strongly. I refer to the 

 yellow coating of the lower face of the matnre leaves ; just 

 like wdiat one sees in R. crocea. The berries are black and 

 3-seeded ; and this indicates close relationship to R. Purshiami 

 rather than to R. CaUfornlca, In the form and texture of the 

 foliage, as well as in its persistency, the species on the other 

 hand approaches the one last named. 



' Traus. St. Louis Acad. v. 367. 



