83 Mr. C. C. Babington on Anacharis Alsinastrum, 



the anthers (the filaments existing), and in the somewhat dif- 

 ferently shaped stigmas ; in these respects agreeing with Nut- 

 tail's description of his genus Udora. It would seem from these 

 facts that Richard's Anacharis is the male of Nuttall's Udora, 

 in which genus also Elodea canadensis (Michx.) must probably be 

 placed. 



It should be observed that the ^ Fl. Boreali- American a ' was 

 published, from his father's notes, by the younger Michaux in 

 1803, and that as the genus Elodea is found there, it would 

 appear that he is the true author of the name, and that the E. 

 canadensis is therefore a triandrous plant. But the name Elodea 

 is expressly claimed by Richard (Mem. de I'Instit. 1811, Pt. 2. 

 p. 4) in these words : "genre encore peu connu, et auquel j'ai 

 donne le nom ^'Elodea ;" and as it is well known (as I learn 

 from Dr. Planchon) that Richard greatly assisted the younger 

 Michaux in the preparation of his work, although he did not 

 allow his name to be placed on its title-page, there can be no 

 doubt that this genus was named and described by him. This 

 will account for the North American plant being placed in Tri- 

 andi'ia, not Dioecia; for E. guyanensis is triandrous, and the look 

 of the plants is so similar, that Richard might well be led to 

 consider E. canadensis as of the same structure when inspecting 

 dried specimens alone. Of the hermaphrodite sti'ucture of E. 

 guyanensis Richard had convinced himself by seeing it alive in 

 its native waters, and it is highly probable that he saw only the 

 female flowers of E. canadensis, with three barren filaments, and 

 considered them as hermaphrodite. 



I need scarcely remark, that Anacharis (1811) is by far an 

 older name than Udora (1818), and that as it has been shown, 

 it is hoped conclusively, that they are sjnionymous, the former 

 must be employed. Nuttall does not seem to have seen Richard^s 

 original paper (Mem. Inst. 1811, Pt. 2), for he quotes a figure 

 of the seed from the 'Annales du Museum,' where a copy of that 

 part of the plate of Elodea is inserted. Had he seen the memoir 

 itself, he would doubtless have identified his plant with the 

 genus Anacharis, and not have conferred a new name upon it. 



In the Hookerian Herbarium a plant is preserved collected 

 by Schweinitz in the United States of America, which Dr. 

 Planchon has determined to belong to the genus Elodea, Rich., 

 but as that name is employed elsewhere, he proposes to name it 

 Apalanthe Schweinitzii. 



The genus Anacharis may be characterized as follows ; — 



Anacharis, Richard. 



Flores dioici. Masc. Spatha tubulosa, ore inflate bifido, uniflora ; 

 flore pedicellate. Perianthium sexpartitum, laciniis exterioribus 



