THE BUCKLER FERNS. 



shuttlecock fashion around its fine, tufted crown, 

 and so neatly and closely arranged as to present 

 inside a circular wall densely clothed with scales, 

 and resembling very much in that respect the 

 appearance presented by the Soft Prickly Shield 

 Fern. But the tips of the fronds of the Male 

 Fern have not the same drooping habit as Poly- 

 sticJmm angular e, being on the contrary thrown 

 up, as it were, defiantly. Perched on the open 

 side of a high embankment, a grand specimen 

 of the Male Fern, fully developed, with all its 

 fronds mature, presents a peculiarly striking 

 appearance. 



The frond of the Male Fern is lance- shaped 

 broadly so tapering up and down ; towards its 

 point, and towards its base. It is, therefore, 

 broadest at its centre. The basal tapering is not 

 carried to a point as at the top of the frond ; but 

 merely admits of the lowest leaflets being some- 

 what shorter than those in the centre. The stem, 

 or stipes, is perhaps about one quarter the length 

 of the leafy portion of the frond, and is covered 

 thickly with chaffy scales. These scales are also 

 carried along the rachis or mid-stem of the frond. 



34i 



