CONTRIBUTION TO THE HISTORY OF ACHYRODES AUREUM. 117 



Chrysuriis aureus, Beauv., Agrosi 123 (1812) ex 

 Kunth, Enum. i. 390; J. Don, Cat. Cant. Ed. x. 

 30 (1823); Spreng, Syst i. 296 (1825); Rclib., lo. 

 Fl. Germ. (1834r-70) /. 149 ex Tlmrber in S. A^^ats. 

 Bot Cal. ii. 299; Echb., 1. c. /. 58 ex Benth., Fl. 

 Austral, vii. 636 and Benth. & Hook., Gen. iii. 

 1183; Echb., 1. c.fig. 367 ex Boise., Fl. Orient, v. 

 570; Sweet, Hort. Brit. 742 (1839). 



Pterium elegans, Desv., Journ. de Bot. 1813 p. 75, ex 



Benth. & Hook., 1. c, by inference. 



Varieties: Dr. Kuntze distinguishes a plant found by him 

 on the islands of Teneriffe and Palma, in the Canaries, as 

 A, aureum var. variegahim, on the ground that in a young 

 state or alwags, the bases of the glumes [and] palets are sub- 

 violaceous, whereas — he says — in the normal form the inflor- 

 escence is pale greenish and concolorous. All my specimens 

 exhibit more or less purple coloring at the base of the palets, 

 especially those of the sterile spikelets; but this tint appears 

 to be developed with age, being visible throughout the pani- 

 cles only at their maturity, and totally absent from those 

 which are just emerging from the sheath, while panicles in 

 intermediate stages of development have the spikelets of the 

 upper portion, tinted, and of the lower, concolorous. Of the 

 nine specimens in the herbarium of the California Academy 

 of Sciences, in San Francisco, nearly all exhibit a purple 

 tint on the palets, but some specimens are so bleached that 

 this can be seen only with difficulty : some, however, show it 

 very clearly, especially those from Sardinia, Hyeres, and San 

 Jacinto. 



Distribution: Spain {Roem. & Schult.; DC, Cat. 

 Monsp.): France, Provence {Lam.; Lo{sel.),BormeB,Ya.T 

 {Herb. Cal. Acad. Sci. v. s. sp.), near Barcelonnette, F 

 Alpes {Tourn. ex Lam. & DC), around Nice {All. 

 Viso [?] and Hyeres [?] {Herb. Cal Acad. Sd. v. s. spp.), 

 the Hyeres Islands {L. Ger.) : Sardinia, in Gallura, the 

 northern-most quarter (coll, RevercJion, Herb. Cal. Acad. 



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