THE FERN PARADISE. 



5. 



THE PRICKLY-TOOTHED BUCKLER FERN. 



Lastrea spimilosa. 



PLATE 6, FIG. 4. 



[HERE is in this Fern a general resem- 

 blance to the Hay-scented Buckler Fern. 

 The fronds grow erect on somewhat thin 

 stems, which in length are about equal to the leafy 

 portion. The general shape of the frond is trian- 

 gular, the widest part being at the base, where 

 the branches are also broader as well as longer 



o 



than those higher up; and the same kind of 

 division of the leaflets of the branches is observable 

 as in the Broad Buckler Fern. The broadness of 

 the lowest pair of branches is occasioned by the 

 leaflets below the mid-stems of the branches being 

 considerably longer than those above; and this 

 inequality, as in the case of Lastrea dilatata, 

 diminishes towards the point of each branch, and 

 towards the apex of the frond. Indeed, the de- 

 scription of the cutting, indentation, and general 



352 



