54 DICRANUM. 



met with on plains, has very short steins and pale yellow 

 leaves, which are so fragile as generally to be met with 

 broken off, and lying upon the tufts in considerable quan- 

 tity, looking at first not unlike the dimidiate calyptroe of 

 this genus 5 and hence the Br. fragile of Dickson. The 

 alpine varieties arid those found on wet rocks have the stems 

 sometimes a span in length ; are generally of a blackish co- 

 lour, with leaves diaphanous at the points, and rarely pro-r 

 ducing fructification. The calyptra of this and of its fo- 

 reign affinities is fringed at the base with long cilia, as re- 

 presented in Muse. Hid., in the cryptogamic part of Hum- 

 boldt's Botany of South America, and in our figure 

 . TAB. XVI., although this singularity in its, structure has 

 been generally overlooked by botanists. 



f f Nerve narrow. 

 <*- Capsule with a struma. 



p. J). virens ; steins elongated ; leaves from a broad sheathing? 

 base, subulate, their margins recurved, crisped when dry, 

 pointing in all directions ; capsule smooth, oblongo-cylin-: 

 drical, subcernuous, struniose ; lid rostrate. (TAB. XVII.) 

 D. virens. Hedw. St. Ci\ v.3. t. 32. Turn. Muse. Hib. p. 69. Engl. 

 Bot. t. 1462. 



HAB. In marshy places, upon mountains. 

 This is always an alpine plant. British specimens differ 

 from continental ones in having longer points to the leaves, 

 which are entire. 



}0. D. strumiferum; stems elongated; leaves from a broad 

 sheathing base, subulate, entire, their margins plane, crisped 

 when dry, pointing in all directions ; capsule furrowed, ob- 

 longo-ovate, subcernuous, strumose ; lid rostrate. (TAB. 

 XVII.) 



D. strumiferum. Engl Bot. t. 2410. Moug. et Nestl n. 125. Fissi- 

 flens strumifer. Hedw. St. Cr. v. 2. t. 32. Bryum inclinans. Dicks. 

 HAB. On marshy places in alpine situations. 

 Except that the margins of the leaves of this species are 

 not recurved as in the preceding, and that the capsule is 

 shorter and furrowed, there is scarcely a mark of distinc- 

 tion to be found between them. 



}1.D. falcatum; steins nearly simple; leaves long, lanceo-? 

 lato- subulate, falcato-secund, nearly entire ; capsule ovate., 

 subcernuous, strumose ; lid rostrate. (TAB. XVII.) 



D. falcatum. Hedw Sp. Muse. t. 32 f. 1-7. Engl. Boj. t, 1989. 

 Bryum longifolium. Dicks. 



