FILICES. 139 



genus Otozamites (Otopteris, Schenk), has been already sufficiently con- 

 sidered in the chapter on Cycadeae. The first therefore to be mentioned 

 in connection with Dictyopteridae is the genus Dictyozamites, Oldh. from 

 the Upper Gondwanas (Jura ?) of the Rajmahal hills on the Madras coast, 

 which O. Feistmantel 1 has described at length and has illustrated with 

 numerous figures. The long imparipinnate leaves had been already 

 discussed by Oldham and Norris in a previous chapter 2 of the same work 

 under the name Dictyopteris. They show the greatest resemblance in habit 

 to those of Otozamites ; the pinnules inserted on the upper side of the 

 rhachis are attached to it by the middle portion of their broad base, and 

 have somewhat large overlapping auricles on the upper and under side. 

 But their nervation has altogether the character of Sagenopteris, and there 

 is no conspicuous median nerve. Much as their habit would incline us to 

 rank them with Cycadeae, we cannot do so at present, for we know as yet 

 of no form of that group which has reticulate nervation. The doubt can 

 be solved only by finding fresh specimens of this apparently rare fossil 

 showing the fructification or at least the inner structure. Dichoneuron 

 Hookeri is a leaf also with reticulate nervation, which Saporta 3 has 

 described from the Permian formation of Eastern Russia, and which had 

 been placed by Brongniart* among Noggerathiae. Its lamina is bifurcated, 

 and the segments are irregularly toothed and incised. I cannot imagine 

 why Saporta considers this to be the leaf of one of his Proangiosperms ; I 

 have noticed this fossil only because he has so explained it. 



The genus Nilssonia again is very like Cycadeae, and reminds us of 

 certain Pterophyllae with short blunt pinnae-like lobes. From its habit 

 it would at first be included among Pterophyllae, as is done by Schimper 5 , 

 who like Goppert 6 and Nathorst 7 even gives to Nilssonia species which are 

 generally considered to belong to Pterophyllae, for example Pterophyllum 

 comptum 8 , Lindl. and Hutt., from the Oolite of Scarborough. He had 

 previously 9 in compliance with Schenk's 10 views dealt with it among the 

 Ferns. In Nathorst n also, who ranks it with Cycadeae, will be found good 

 figures and a careful examination of the genus. The principal species, 

 Nilssonia polymorpha, Schenk, is peculiar to the Rhaetic formation, and is 

 very abundant both in Franconia and in Schonen ; two allied species are 

 found with it in the same localities. How far other forms from the Lias 

 and the Lower Oolite belong to Nilssonia is difficult to determine owing to 

 the resemblance to Pterophyllum. The ribbon-like obtuse leaves of 

 Nilssonia polymorpha vary greatly in form, sometimes having the whole or 

 large portions of the margin entire, but being more often divided by lateral 



1 O. Feistmantel (1), I ; Pal. Ind., ser. ii, vol. i, pt. iv. 2 Pal. Ind., ser. ii, vol. i, pt. i. 



3 de Saporta (11). 4 Brongniart (5). 5 Schimper (2), p. 225. 6 Goppert (8). 7 Nathorst (2). 

 8 Schimper (2), t. 45. Schimper (1), vol. i, p. 488. 10 Schenk (3), tt. 29-31. ll Nathorst (2X 



