Alectra.] xcn. scrophulariacevE (hemsley and skan). 365 



about I in. long, dusky purple, nearly equally 5-lobed ; lobes lanceolate- 

 oblong, rather obtuse, shorter than the tube. Corolla about £ in. long, 

 longitudinally striate ; tube very short, not constricted ; limb 5-lobed ; 

 lobes spathulate, somewhat concave, spreading. Filaments densely 

 bearded ; anther-cells not apiculate. — Melasma Wehoitschii, Hiern in 

 Cat. Afr. PI. Welw. i. 769. 



Lower Guinea. AngoLi : Mossamedes ; in sandy places by the River Bero, 

 near Cavalheiros, Welwitsch, 5812 ! 



Description partly from Hiern. 



3. A. Bainesii, Ilemsl. A parasitic almost leafless, nearly 

 glabrous herb about 6 in. high, turning black in drying. Stem of the 

 only specimen seen having two lateral branches ; scales few and very 

 small. Flowers small, crowded on the upper half of the stem, subsessile. 

 Bracts ovate, obtuse, 3-4 lin. long. Bracteoles oblong- spathulate, 

 shorter than the calyx, obtuse. Calyx hispid, campanulate, nearly equally 

 5-lobed, about 4 lin. long ; lobes deltoid, obtuse, shorter than the tube. 

 Corolla glabrous, 4-5 lin. long, deeply 5-lobed ; lobes spathulate, rounded 

 at the top, undulate, strongly veined, three times as long as the tube, the 

 two upper larger than the others. Stamens nearly equal ; filaments 

 very short, bearded close under the anthers ; anther-cells oblong, slightly 

 unequal, obtuse. 



Mozamb. Dist. Beclmanaland : Ngamiland; Koobie (Kobis) to North 

 Shaw Valley, Haines ! 



4. A. kilimandjarica, Hemsl. An almost leafless, puberulous, 

 slightly hispid root-parasite, changing black in drying. Stems slender, 

 erect, puberulous, 5-15 in. high, few-flowered, simple or with two or 

 three erect branches from near the base. Leaves mostly scale-like and 

 very small, hispid, largest |- in. long, lanceolate-oblong, obtuse, obscurely 

 toothed. Racemes loose when fully grown out. Floral leaves or bracts 

 oblong-lanceolate, obtuse, shorter than the almost sessile flowers. 

 Bracteoles linear, shorter than the calyx, persistent. Calyx hispid, 

 about \ in. long, 10-ribbed, nearly equally 5-lobed ; lobes triangular, 

 ruther obtuse, more hairy on the margin, posterior largest. Corolla 

 about twice as long as the calyx, nearly equally 5-lobed ; lobes rounded, 

 shorter than the tube, 3-veined. Stamens nearly equal, inserted near 

 the middle of the tube ; filaments slender, slightly bearded ; anthers 

 nearly equal and parallel. Ovary glabrous ; style clavate, recurved. — 

 Melasma orobanchoides, Engl. Pfl. Ost-Afr. C. 359. 



Mozamb. Dist. German East Africa: Usambara; Ainboni, Hoist, 28031 

 Lake Chala, Volkens, 325 ! 



This may possibly prove not to be specifically different from A. orobanchoides y 

 Benth., but we prefer to avoid further confusion. The type of the latter is different 

 in aspect, has smaller flowers, and relatively shorter bracteoles, and there may be 

 other differences which better material would bring to light. 



Under the name of Alectra orobanchoides (Melasma orobanchoides, Engler) 

 botanists have included about half a dozen forms which we regard as distinct species. 

 A. orobanchoides, Benth. (DC. Prodr. x. 340) was founded on specimens collected 



