TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION K. 851 



•1. Die SUuV' u)id Calm- Flora de^ Ilarzes. Von Professor H. Potonie. 



5. On iivo Malayan ' Myrmecophilous ' Ferns. By Pt. H. Yapp. 



Polypodiuin (Lecanopteris) camosiim (Blume) and Polypodium sinuoauoi 

 (Wall) are two epiphytic Ferns which occur almost exclusively in the Malay 

 Peninsula and Archipelago. 



Their creeping rhizomes are thick and fleshy, the ventral surface closely 

 adhering to the substratum, the dorsal hearing the leaves, which are articulated, 

 upon large conical leaf-cushions. Branching is lateral, and is so frequent in the 

 case of Polypodium carnosum that thick compact masses of interlacing stems are 

 formed, which completely encircle the branches of the tree on which it grows. 



The fleshy stems of both Ferns are traversed by an extensive system of hollow 

 spaces, which, like the galleries of Myrmecodia and Hydrophytum, are invariably 

 inhabited by colonies of ants. These 'ant-galleries' are arranged on a perfectly 

 definite plan the details of which differ to some extent in the two Ferns. In both 

 cases, however, there is a single main ventral gallery, which runs in a longitudinal 

 direction through the stem, giving off a lateral gallery to each branch and a dorsal 

 one to each leaf-cushion. The galleries are formed by the breaking down of a 

 larg-e-celled, thin-walled tissue, which in the youngest parts of the stem appears 

 to function as a water-reservoir. 



Though undoubtedly closely allied species, these Ferns have been placed by 

 many authorities in different genera. This has been largely on account of the 

 curious position of the sori in Polypodium carnosum. In this Fern, and in one or 

 two of its immediate allies, the sori are borne on marginal lobes, which are 

 completely reSexed upon the upper surface of the frond. This arrangement is 

 possibly connected with spore distribution. 



6. The Vegetation of Mount Ophir. By A. G. Tansley. 



7. On Certain Points in the Structure oj the Seeds of iEthiotesta, Brongn., 

 and Stephanospermum, Brongn. By Professor F. W. Olivek. 



The author gave some account of the anatomy of the fossil gymnosperm seed 

 named by Brougniart Sfephaiiospennwn akenioides, and of another seed uearlv 

 allied to the foregoing, which he provisionally recognised as JLthiote»ta sub'ylohom, 

 Brongn. Attention was drawn to the mantle of tracheal tissue which invests the 

 uucellus in both cases. The possible physiological significance of this tissue was 

 considered, and some suggestions were ofiered as to the conditions whicli led to 

 tlie evolution of the seed in this group. The author expressed the opinion that 

 theri' was considerable probability that the seed habit was at its origin a scerophilous 

 adaptation. 



8. Natural Surgery in Leaves. 

 By Dr. F. F. Blackman and Miss Matthaei. 



9. On the Relation between CO^ Production and Vitality. 

 By Dr. F. F. Blackmak and Miss Maxthaei. 



