266 THE FERN PARADISE. 



Lanceolatum are perhaps not so broad and not 

 quite so much divided as the widest branches of 

 the fronds of Adiantum nigrum, which are, as 

 already stated, the lowest branches in the frond. 

 Another mark of recognition in Lanceolatum is the 

 peculiar arrangement of the ripened spores. In 

 Adiantum nigrum these are at first arranged in 

 lines at the backs of the fronds ; then they become 

 confluent, and often densely crowd the entire 

 under surface of the leaflets. In Lanceolatum they 

 are ordinarily arranged in little round bulged 

 clusters, which are distinct from each other. 



The Black Maidenhair Spleenwort is widely 

 distributed throughout the United Kingdom. 

 But Lanceolatum is much rarer, and is confined 

 in its range to the south and west of England, to 

 South Wales, to the south of Ireland, and to the 

 Channel Islands. In the Channel Islands it grows 

 very luxuriantly. It varies in size, from tiny 

 plants of some six inches long, to luxuriant speci- 

 mens of a foot and eighteen inches long. Another 

 peculiarity of Lanceolatum is that it prefers the 

 sea-coast, and is often found on rocks in company 



