Notes and NEws 59 
of this group of ferns is so small that the finding of the 
prothallia of any of the species even of those fairly well 
known, would be well worth notice, especially if the 
material were in shape for study. Itis suggested that if 
anyone of the readers finds any of these prothallia, they 
take care to collect them fresh and send them to some 
university where they can be studied. They may be 
looked for wherever colonies of plants are found. 
Professor Campbell has recently brought together all 
the results of his and other’s studies in connection with 
a monograph on the whole group Eusporangiatae, which 
includes the Ophioglossaceae, and the tropical Marat- 
tiaceae. (The Eusporangiatae; the comparative mor- 
phology of the Ophioglossaceae and Marattiaceae. Car- 
negie Institution of Washington, Publication 140, pp. 1- 
229, figs. 1-192, plates 1-13. 1911.) The facts in the 
present article are derived from the above publication. 
The prothallium of Ophioglossum as far as known is 
always a brownish subterranean body, more or less 
cylindrical in shape. It is also always infected with 
some kind of fungus without which it seems unable to 
thrive. Attempts togrow the prothallia from spores have 
been practically unsuccessful, apparently because none of 
the fungus was present in the soil used. The prothallia 
of O. vulgatum are reported to be as much as two inches 
in length. Their general resemblance is to a root, and, 
Bruchman believes, they may live as long as twenty 
years. The antheridia and archegonia are born on all 
sides. 
The prothallia of Botrychium Lunaria and of B. vir- 
gintanum are flatter and bear the sexual organs only 
on the upper surface, the antheridia along the middle 
and the archegonia in two rows alongside. Like those 
of Ophioglossum, they have no green color. In both 
genera, however, the spores contain some chlorophyll. 
The prothallia of Botrychium are probably at times very 
