124 HISTORY OF BEITISH TEENS. 



The fronds are ovate, lance-shaped in outline, on a stipes 

 of moderate length, which stipes is much thickened at the 

 base, and densely clothed with entire, lance-shaped, pointed 

 scales, of a very dark brown colour in the centre, but nearly 

 transparent at the margins. They are bipinnate, with elon- 

 gate-triangular or tapering pinnse, placed nearly opposite, 

 and having more or less of obliquity from the larger deve- 

 lopment of the inferior side. The pinnse are pinnate, and 

 the pinnules near their base often so deeply divided as to be 

 again almost pinnate; the rest are pinnatifid, or in the 

 upper parts merely deeply toothed, but the margins, whether 

 deeply or shallowly lobed, are set with teeth, which end in 

 short spinous points. 



The veining is very similar to the more compound parts 

 of the allied species spinulosa ; and the fructification is pro- 

 duced in great abundance, the sori being ranged in two 

 lines crosswise the pinnse on the larger lobes, or lengthwise 

 on the less divided parts ; so that they have apparently a 

 less regular distribution than occurs in spinulosa. The 

 sori are covered by kidney-shaped scales or indusia, which 

 are fringed around the margin with projecting glandular 

 bodies. 



One of the varieties of this Fern has the fronds shorter, 



