Carruthers—On Fossil Araucarian Cones. 251 



name, characterised it as a " cone of an unknown species." Unger, 

 in Ms " Genera," referred it to Zamiostrohus, a genus which we hope 

 to show at another time has been made the receptacle for other true 

 coniferous cones besides the one in question. A comparison of Dr. 

 Fitton's figures with A. splicerocarpa, and with the recent species of 

 Araucaria, belonging to the section Eutacta, has convinced me that it 

 belongs to this genus. 



Although the Bruton fossil is only a cast of the cone, it is so cha- 

 racteristic that it can be certainly referred to its modern allies. The 

 single seed supported on each scale, along with the general form of 

 the cone, conclusively establish it to be a true Araucaria. Sir W. J. 

 Hooker describes A. Coohii ("Botanical Magazine," Yol. Ixxviii., 

 Tab. 4635) as having '' two oblong seeds " in each scale, a struc- 

 ture at variance with the generic character. I have carefully ex- 

 amined a number of scales from different cones, and I find that 

 while the form of the cavity is different from that of the other 

 species, it is truly unilocular, and contains a siagie seed. In its 

 early stage a transverse section of the hard integument of the seed 



Longitudinal Section of Scale of Araucaria JBlDWiLLI. 

 {From a dried specimen, in which the seed is separated from the scale.) 



gives a dumb-bell-like outline, exhibiting two large open canals on 

 either side, which freely communicate romid the base of the seed, 

 while the surfaces of the integument almost approach in the centre, 

 and between these surfaces the single embryo is situated. As the 

 seed grows the contracted central portion enlarges, while the lateral 

 canals retain their original dimensions ; and the ripe seed shows the 

 imicellular cavity with its single seed and relatively slender lateral 

 canals. An examination of the early stage of the scale would very 

 readily give the erroneous imjoression that it contained two seeds, or 

 rather, that the hard integument was bilocular and contained a 

 single seed in each loculament. For comparison I have placed a 

 transverse section of the cone of A. Bidwilli on the plate (Fig. 6), 

 and I add here a longitudinal section of another scale, showing the 

 relation that the seed bears to the scale. This genvis contains 

 six known species, four of which are natives of Polynesia, and 

 the remaining two of South America, The species thus geo- 

 graphically grouped together have so many peculiarities in common, 

 that Salisbury proposed to establish two genera for them — the 

 one, Colymheia, including the two American species characterised, as 



