96 



SOME EXTINCT OR LOST AND REDISCOVERED 

 PLANTS, 11. 



y Astragalus labradoricus, DC. 



P. A. Rydberg 



This was first described as Astragalus secundus Michx. (Fl. 

 Bor. Am. 2: 66. 1803). Michaux gives the following de- 

 scription : 



"secundus: a. caulescens, procumbens: spicis pedunculosis; 



leguminibus secundis, pendulis, nigricantibus. 

 Ohs: Minutim pubescens, foliola ovalia; flores purpurascentes: 



legumina recta, utrinque longiuscule accuminata. 

 Hah: in septentrionalibus Canadae." 



Pursh in his Flora (p. 473, 18 14) gave practically the same de- 

 scription, only recasting Michaux's words, and added the follow- 

 ing distribution; " In the north of Canada, Michaux. Labrador, 

 Colmaster." 



As there was an older Astragalus secundus, DC, 1802 De Can- 

 dolle (Prodr. 2: 473. 1825), changed the name to Astragalus 

 labradoricus, copying Pursh's description almost verbatim. 



Torrey and Gray in their Flora (1: 331. 1838) copied De 

 Candolle's description, adding in a note below: "Legume about 

 ^ of an inch long, clothed with blackish hairs, somewhat 

 stipitate, half 2-celled. Cells 3-4-seeded." As they did not 

 add anything to the distribution, it is evident that the species 

 had not been collected in the meantime. In fact the plant has 

 been lost for about one hundred years. 



Amos Eaton included A. secundus in all the seven editions of 

 his manual from 1817-1836, paraphrasing Pursh's description, 

 without giving any additional matter, so also Eaton and Wright 

 in their Botany of 1840. 



Alfonso Wood omits it in both his Class Book and his Botanist 

 and Florist, and so did Gray in his Manual, probably because 

 they regarded it as extra-limital. It is also omitted in Britton's 

 manual and in Britton and Brown's Illustrated Flora. 



In his monograph of Astragalus (Proc. Am. Acad. 6: 205. 

 1863), Dr. Gray made A. secundus Michx. and A. labradoricus 

 DC. synonyms of A. alpinus L. In this interpretation he was 

 followed by Watson (see Bibl. Ind. 190. 1878). This seems to 

 have settled the matter until lately. 



