OPHRYDE^—SERAPIADIN^— ORCHIS 209 



projecting slightly downwards. Stigmatic fold white, grooved, equal to caudicles. 

 Anther-cells red-purple, pollinia olive-green, caudicles yellow, transparent. Seeds ipide 

 0. maadata. I saw two or three specimens with pure white flowers in the New Forest.' 



Var. macroglossa Dr.= A large-flowered form with dark lilac markings, side- 

 lobes much longer than the mid-lobe. Llandrindod, Harlech, etc. I have not seen this. 



The distinguishing features of the sub-sp. elodes are : 



(i) Leaves rather long, narrow, tapering, more or less folded and recurved. 



(2) Lowest leaf similar to those just above it, not short, broad and rounded at the 

 tip as in the type. 



(3) Flowers usually larger. 



(4) Sepals narrower, spreading horizontally, not erect, often slightly twisted. 



(5) Lip broad, shallowly lobed at the apex, side-lobes usually rounded out, mid- 

 lobe small, tooth-like, often shorter than side-lobes. 



(6) Spur very slender, cylindrical, not wide-mouthed as in the type. 



There are, however, exceptions to the above. The leaves are sometimes oblong 

 and then up to 3 cm. broad. The flowers sometimes in a dense spike and then smaller, 

 the lip sometimes obovate, wedge-shaped at base, widening downwards, and then 

 not so broad (Text-fig. 11, Nos. 12, 13). The mid-lobe may be as long and nearly 

 as broad as the side-lobe (Text-fig. 11, Nos. 3, 9, 18) or even longer (Text-fig. 11, 

 Nos. 4, 10, 19, 25), One must be prepared to find one or two points of diff'erence, 

 though most of the characters agree. In the Basses Pyrenees its stout erect habit, 

 short rather broad acute finely spotted latijolia-like leaves (the lowest rather short 

 but acute), dense pyramidal spike, pale violet-rose flowers with broadly elliptical lip 

 and curved broken lines of minute irregular spots, gave it a very distinctive appearance. 



A plant from wet ground, Tregaron bog, N. Wales, had horizontal tubers with 

 ovoid segments with long tapering tails (4-13 cm.). The stem rarely has a narrow 

 central tube. Leaf-spotting does not appear to be due to melanism, as plants with 

 dark-coloured flowers sometimes have unspotted leaves, and heavily spotted leaves 

 occur with pale-coloured flowers. Leaves may be obtuse or rather acute, usually 

 recurved, spots small, or large, very rarely ringed and then possibly due to a strain 

 of 0. latijoUa in the plant. Flowers usually light-coloured. Bracts on large spikes 

 sometimes as broad and long as in the marsh orchids. Sepals sometimes gently 

 sloping upwards. The sides of the Hp sometimes slope gently downwards, and the 

 obtusely pointed tips of the side-lobes sometimes point inwards like callipers, rarely 

 these lobes are almost frilled. Mid-lobe very variable, usually tooth-like and shorter 

 than side-lobes, sometimes approaching them in width, and as long or even longer 

 than they. Pale colours predominate, darker flowers are the exception. Lip varies 

 in size, and has been found from 16 mm. broad by 10 mm. long to 4 mm. broad 

 ' Sub. var. leucantha Dr. B.E.C. p. 167 (1917). ^ B.E.C. p. 579 (1919). 



GBO 27 



