II 



THE WALKING FERN AND HART'S-TONGUE. 269 



The stipes are short and the entire frond 

 seldom reaches a length of more than 

 twenty inches or a width of two inches. 

 It is narrowest at the eared and heart- 

 shaped base and gradually widens to be- 

 yond the middle, and then tapers to the 

 acute apex. The margins are entire but 

 with such an abundance of tissue that 

 they present a ruffled appearance in the 

 living frond. Much of this appearance is 

 lost when it is pressed for the herbarium. 



The spores are not ripe until Sep- 

 tember. They are borne towards the 

 apical half of the frond in long lines 

 reaching nearly from midvein to margin. 

 Occasionally the sori reach quite to the 

 margin and over on the upper side. 

 They are in pairs, one on each side of the 

 vein and opening toward it. The fruit is 

 very abundant and the fertile fronds are 

 noticeably heavier than sterile ones. 



This species is noted for the frequency 

 with which it produces forked fronds. It 

 is as if it has exerted its utmost to be 

 fine and delicate like the rest. At Chit- 

 tenango Falls we found plenty of such 

 fronds without searching for them. One 

 was forked seven times. The fronds also 

 occasionally root at the tip and Lowe 

 mentions a plant found wild in Ireland 

 which had the upper surface scattered 

 over with young plants. 



The hart's-tongue has several common 



HART'S-TONGUE. 



Scolopendrium vulgare. 



