348 CARDIOCARPALES [CH. 



account of the anatomical details of Brongniart's sections. This 

 seed appears to be closely allied to the polypterous forms Ptycho- 

 testa and Hexapterospermum : the testa consists of a sarcotesta 

 differentiated into two zones the outer of which contains vascular 

 bundles in correspondence with the ribs, and an inner shell. There 

 is a nucellar vascular supply and the nucellus is free on the flanks 

 as in Stephanospermum and Trigonocarpus. 



Samaropsis. Goeppert. 



The characters- of this Permian and Carboniferous genus have 

 already been described : the name has reference only to super- 

 ficial features especially the samara-like 'wing/ and connotes 

 no special anatomical features. 



Samaropsis fluitans (Dawson). The species described by 

 Dawson 1 as Cardiocarpum fluitans from Carboniferous strata in 

 Nova Scotia, is represented by oval seeds with a fairly broad 

 border usually showing an apical notch. Fig. 502, A, is a copy 

 of Dawson's figure: the apparent absence of an apical sinus in 

 the 'wing' is probably due either to an error in interpretation or 

 to some imperfection in the specimen. As fig. 502, A, shows, 

 the type-specimens are far from satisfactory, and it may be that 

 they are not specifically identical with the more complete specimens 

 from European strata referred to Dawson's species. Zeiller 2 

 points out that seeds of this species vary considerably in size, but 

 there is always in well-preserved examples a bifid beak at the apex. 

 Seeds of similar form though not specifically identical are described 

 from the Coal Measures of Missouri as Cardiocarpon (Samaropsis) 

 Branneri Fairch. and White 3 . Good examples of S. fluitans are 

 figured by Weiss 4 from the Coal Measures of Saarbriicken and 

 the species is widely distributed in Upper Carboniferous beds 

 generally. 



Samaropsis bicaudata Kidston. This species (fig. 502, E) 

 originally described 5 from Lower Carboniferous rocks in Scotland 

 as Cardiocarpus bicaudata and subsequently assigned to Samaropsis, 



1 Dawson (66) A. p. 165, PI. xn. fig. 74; Zeiller (06) B. p. 226; Kidston (11) 

 p. 236. 2 Zeiller (88) A. p. 644. 



3 White (99) B. p. 266, Pis. LXI. fig. 12, LXXII. fig. 3. 



4 Weiss, C. E. (72) PL xvm. 



5 Kidston (94) B. PL vi. fig. 3; (02) B. PL Lvni. figs. 5, 6. 



