FILICES. 47 



East Cornwall, North Devon, West Gloucester, Hereford, Worcester- 

 shire and Shropshire, as well as both North and South Wales ; from 

 Lancashire, Derbyshire, and Yorkshire, it occurs in almost every 

 county north to Caithness and Sutherland, and may certainly he 

 called frequent in Scotland. It is not recorded from Orkney, but it 

 is from Shetland. In Ireland it is very rare, and the only recent 

 authority which is beyond question is that on Knocklayd Mountain, 

 Antrim, where it was found about the height of 1800 feet by Dr. 

 Moore ; Benoo Mountain, near Manor Hamilton, Leitrim, where it 

 was found by the late Mr. J. Wynne ; and near Loch Talt, on the Ox 

 Mountain, Sligo (Mr. P. Warren). 



England, Scotland, Ireland. Perennial. Summer, Autumn. 



Rootstock pitchy black, about the thickness of a stocking-wire, 

 creeping just under the surface of the leaf-mould or loose soil in 

 which it grows, emitting numerous capillary root-fibres sparingly 

 clothed with very short down ; the growing extremity and young 

 branches of the rhizome are completely covered with ovate, very pale 

 brown scales, which disappear from the older portions of the caudex ; 

 when the plant is luxuriant, the rhizomes and their branches 

 interlace and form a sort of loose tangle. Fronds few in number, 

 proceeding from the two sides of the caudex alternately, usually from 

 ^ inch to 1 inch apart. Rackis 6 inches to 1 foot high, very slender, 

 bluntly channelled on the upper half on the front, containing 2 vascular 

 bundles. Lamina 2 J to 5 J inches by 3 J to 8 inches broad, with a few 

 pairs of distant opposite pinnae, the lower pair so much larger than 

 any of the others that the frond might be termed ternate with each 

 of its 3 divisions bipinnate. These lowest pinnae have their pinnules, 

 especially the basal ones, much more developed on the lower side than 

 on the upper; the lowest pinnae of all the 3 divisions have their lowest 

 pinnules separated from succeeding pairs, but towards their apex the 

 pinnae coalesce ; the same thing takes place with the pinnules of these 

 pinnae, of which the basal ones are separate, but the apical ones 

 cohere, so that the apex of each of the 3 main divisions and of 

 the tips of the lower subdivisions are only lobed or toothed — not 

 pinnate. The lowermost of these ultimate pinnules or subdivisions are 

 more or less deeply crenate-serrate, the upper ones entire ; each one 

 has a midrib, which is flexuous towards the apex, and gives off veins 

 which run to the margin of the pinnule or lobe ; these veins are simple, 

 or the lower ones once or even twice-forked. The fronds begin to 

 be produced early in May, and very soon attain their full size, so that 

 mature sporangia may be found in June. The sporangia are at first 

 yellow, they are minute and sometimes ultimately nearly coalesce 

 so as to form submarginal lines upon the segments. The fronds 

 perish with the first frost. When growing in shade they are of a 



