448 filices. [Pteris. 



Fronds 1 to 2 ft. long, simply pinnate. Pinnae numerous, linear-lanceolate, 

 entire, sessile and cordate at the base, but not decurrent or adnate, mostly 

 about 4 in. long, the lowest shorter. Sori along the greater part of the 

 margin, the barren portion minutely serrulate. — R. costata, Bory ; Hook, and 

 Arn. Bot. Beech, t. 51. 



Hongkong, Lorrain, Wright ; on dry banks about Victoria, Wilford. Widely dispersed 

 over the tropical and subtropical regions of the Old World, extending northward to south 

 Europe ; more rare in America, and chiefly in the West Indies. 



2. P. semlpinnata, Linn.; Hook. Spec. Ml. 169. Rhizome thick, 

 shortly creeping. Fronds 1 to 3 ft. high, pinnate, the upper pinnae undi- 

 vided and more or less confluent, passing into the pinnatifid apex, the lower 

 3 to 6 pairs all distinct, quite entire on the upper side, deeply cut on the lower 

 side into 2 or more very unequal oblong or lanceolate lobes, and all ending 

 in a long lanceolate lobe ; occasionally the lowest pinna of all is again semi- 

 pinnate. Sori usually occupying nearly the whole margin of the fertile seg- 

 ments, the barren ones serrulate. 



Common in ravines and ditches, Hinds and others. In the hilly regions of India, from 

 Ceylon and the Peninsula to Silhet and Khasia ; in the Archipelago, and northward to China 

 and Japan. 



3. P. crenata, Sw.; Hook. Spec. Fil. ii. 163. Rhizome creeping. Fronds 

 1 to 2 ft. high, pinnate, with few distant pinnse, the lower ones or nearly all 

 again pinnate, with few usually confluent or decurrent segments, the fertile 

 ones linear or linear-lanceolate, entire, 2 to 3 in. long, or the terminal one 

 much longer ; the sterile pinnae or segments much shorter and usually broader 

 and more or less serrulate. Occasionally the whole frond reduced to 5 or 3 

 segments. 



Frequent in ravines, Champion and others. Widely dispersed over tropical Asia, Australia, 

 and the Pacific islands, extending northward to Loochoo and Chusan. 



4. P. serrulata, Linn. fil. ; Llook. Spec. Ml. ii. 167. Fronds rather 

 slender, \\ to 2 ft. high, pinnate. Pinnae few, distant, linear or linear-lan- 

 ceolate, 3 to 6 in. long, the upper ones entire and decurrent along the rhachis 

 nearly or quite to the next pair, the lower ones more or quite distinct, and 

 either the lowest pair or the greater number deeply pinnatifid, with few long 

 segments or at least deeply 2-lobed. Sori along the greater part of the margin 

 of the fertile segments ; the barren segments usually serrulate. 



Hongkong, Champion. On the adjacent continent, and perhaps in Japan. Not known 

 from elsewhere, but very closely allied to the widely diffused P. cretica, Linn., of which it 

 may possibly prove to be a variety. 



5. P. nemoralis, Willd. ; Hook. Spec. Ml. ii. 203. Trunk short, erect. 

 Fronds large (usually above 2 ft. long), pinnate, with numerous pinnae, the 

 lowest often divided or again pinnate ; all distinct, regularly and deeply pin- 

 natifid ; the segments numerous, oblong or lanceolate, more or less falcate and 

 obtuse, the lowest often above 1 inch long, the upper ones tapering to the 

 end. Sori occupying the whole or the greater portion of the margin. Barren 

 segments scarcely broader. — P. quadriaurita, Retz ; Hook. Spec. Fil. ii. 179, 

 t. 134 B. 



Common in the island, Champion, Wright, Wilford. Widely distributed over the tro- 

 pical regions of the New and the Old World. The only character by which the P. quadri- 



