North American Cypcrocccc. 333 



to increase the confusion, Schultes, finding that Muhlenberg 

 had described a »S. Uneatus with bristles, considered it a new 

 species, and named it S. amUguus, but I have ascertained 

 Muhlenberg's plant to be identical with the S. dlvnricatus of 

 Elliott. 



North American species of Scirpus which are little known. 



1. S. RETicuLATUs, Lain. ill. 1. p. 142; Ham. SfSchuU. sijsi. 2. p. 

 148 ; Poir. enc. meth. 6. p. 771. 



" S. culmo gladiato nudo, aspero, uinbellacomposita foliacca, involu- 

 cri foliis reticulalis. E Carolina, D. Fraser." Lam. 1. c. 



Ob3. To this very brief and imperfect specific character of Lamark, 

 the following description is added by Poiret : " Culmus basi foliosus sub- 

 trigonus siibstriatus, angulis acutls asperis. Pedunculi iiiEequales rigidi 

 angulosi ; spiculas in umbellis partialibus fasciculatffi, tenues, parvulas 

 oblongSE acutcS pedunculatec, subfulvas. Glunice angusta;, lanceolate 

 acutas. Involucrum universale foliolis 6 — 8 aniplis, inasqualibus, floribus 

 multo longioribus, margine asperis; partiale e foliolis duobus oppositis 

 lanceolatis acutis longioribus spiculis. — iS. sylvatico proximus." Enc. 

 meth. — Even this description is insullicient for determining either the 

 species or the proper genus of the plant, as no notice is taken of the 

 bristles, style or nut. 



2. S. CAROLiNiANus, Lam. ill. 6. p. 142. 



'' S. culmo subtriquetro filiformi, umbella composita involucri 2- 

 phyllo longuisculo. E Carolina, D. Fraser," — Lam. 1. c. 



Obs. Vahl refers Lamark's plant to FimbristyUs castanca, but with 

 some doubt whether it might not belong to Scirpus niilumnalis. It is 

 impossible to identify'' the species by the brief character here quoted. 



3. S. NiTKNS, Vahl, enum. 2. p. 272 ; Pursh,Jl.l. p.56 ; Isolepis 

 nitens, Rczm. ^' Schult. 2. p. 117. 



" S. spicis ovatis pedicellatis, corymbis subcompositis axillaribus 

 terminalibusque, culmo tereti. 



" Culmus semipedalis, articulatis, tectis vaginis foliorum; folia radicalia 

 culmo breviora, laxa, linearia; involucri foliola alterna subulata, inferiora 

 vix unguicularia. OchrefE breves, oblique truncatse. Corymbus pe- 

 dunculis 6, axillares, simplex, pedunculis 4 — 5 unguicularibus, totidem 

 pedicellis 1 — 2-stachyis. Spicac magnitudine seminis Coriandri, totas 

 fusco-ferrugineae, nilidse ; squamis ovatis, acuti?. Stj'lus bifidus basi 



