AEQUATORIALES RUBRAE 107 



PHORADENDRON RUBRUM Grisebach. 



Phoradendron rubrum Grisebach, Fl. Br. W. I. p. 314. 1860, as to 



name only. 

 Viscum rubrum Linnaeus, Sp. Plant, p. 1025. 1753. de Candolle, Pro- 



dromus. vol. 4. p. 281. 



P. tetrastachyum spathulifolium Grisebach, Cat. PI. Cub. p. 120. 1866. 

 P. tetrastichus Hitchcock, Kept. Mo. Bot. Gard. vol. 4. p. 125. 1893, 



for tetrastachyum. 

 Phoradendrum spathulifolium Krug & Urban, Bot. Jahrb. vol. 24. p. 41. 



1897. 



At most somewhat pseudodichotomous, the rather long branches with 

 basal cataphyls only, androgynous. Internodes short (2-3x20 mm.), 

 smooth, rhombically ancipital and somewhat dilated upwards. Cataphyls 

 a nearly basal pair, frequently followed by 1 or 2 others at short inter- 

 vals, blunt and spreading. Leaves somewhat rhombically lance-spatulate 

 to obovate, obtuse, 1-1.5x4 cm., cuneately tapered and subpetioled for 

 5 mm. Spikes more or less clustered, short (scarcely 20 mm.), with 2 

 or 3 oblong joints about 12-flowered in 4+2 series: peduncle 2-3 mm. 

 long. Fruit red or exceptionally yellow, subglobose, smooth, 4 mm. in 

 diameter : sepals more or less erect and parted. Plates 152, 153. 



Antillean and Bahamian regions. The type from the Bahamas. 



Specimens examined: BAHAMAS. Without locality (Catesby, in the 

 herbarium of the South Kensington Museum, the prototype of V. ru- 

 brum). ABACO (Coker,558). FORTUNE ISL. (Eggers, 3847). CROOKED 

 ISL. (Hitchcock, 1890; Brace, 4643). LONG ISL. (Britton & Millspaugh, 

 6325). CAT ISL. (Britton & Millspaugh, 5867). MARIGUANA (Wilson, 

 7449, 7457, 7532, 7579). NEW PROVIDENCE (Brace, 3428; Britton & Brace, 

 832; Coker, 303). ACKLIN ISL. (Brace, 4461) . WATLING 's ISL. (Wilson, 

 7254). INAGUA (Nash & Taylor, 947, 1021, 1314 and 1342 with yellow 

 fruit). ANTILLES. CUBA (Wright, 512, 1200b, 13001, the type of P. 

 tetrastachyum spathulifolium and of P. spathulifolium; Combs, 347, 348; 

 Shafer,296,371). 



Linnaeus apparently based Viscum rubrum on the description and 

 illustration of the plant figured on pi. 81 of Catesby 's celebrated work 

 on the Bahamas, the time character of which is evident from the accom- 

 panying photographic illustration of one of the several specimens of 

 Catesby 's collection preserved at South Kensington. Grisebach, who in- 

 tended to transfer into Phoradendron the species which Linnaeus had 

 called Viscum rubrum, and who therefore stands as the author of the 

 name as here used, really applied it to the plant here called P. antillarum, 

 and he subsequently rechristened the true rubrum P. tetrastachyum spa- 

 thulifolium. 



