AN OWL'S HEAD HOLIDAY. 251 



one place a rock thickly matted with the com- 

 mon polypody ; in another a patch of the 

 maiden-hair ; in still another a plenty of the 

 Christmas fern, or a smaller group of one of 

 the beech ferns {Phegopteris polypodioides or 

 Phegopteris Dryopteris). Our grape-ferns or 

 moonworts, on the other hand, covet more 

 elbow-room. The largest species (^Botrychium 

 Virginianum), although never growing in any- 

 thing like a bed or tuft, was nevertheless com- 

 mon throughout the woods ; you could gather 

 a handful almost anywhere ; but I found only 

 one plant of Botrychium lanceolatum, and only 

 two of Botrychium matricaricefolium (and these 

 a long distance apart), even though, on account 

 of their rarity and because I had never before 

 seen the latter, I spent considerable time, first 

 and last, in hunting for them. What can these 



Polypodium vulgare. A. aculealum, var. Braunii, 



Adiantum pedatum. Cystopteris bulbifera. 



Pteris aquilina. C. fragilis. 



Asplenium Trichomanes. Onoclea struthiopteris. 



A. thelypteroides. 0. sensibilis. 



A. Filix-fcemina. Woodsia Ilvensis. 



Phegopteris polypodioides. Dicksonia punctilobula,* 

 P. Dryopteris. ' Osmunda regalia. 



Aspidium marginal^. 0. Claytoniana. 

 A. spinulosum, variety undeter- 0. cinnamomea* 



mined. Botrychium lanceolatum. 

 A, spinulosum, var. dilatatum B. matricaricefolium. 



A. Goldianum. B. ternatum. 



A. acrostichoides. B. Virginianum. 



