352 Transactions.— Botany. 
differences. The ultimate segments of the fronds are remarkably wide and 
short, indeed, on some fronds, might more properly be termed lobes. The 
few specimens brought away by Mr. Winkelmann this year (1883) from the 
Great Barrier Islet, were also barren, and very similar. 
4. S. vulgaris, sp. nov. 
Plant terrestrial, gregarious, dicecious, stipitate, erect, arising from a 
short stout rhizome, 2-8 springing together, or nearly so, 11-2 inches high 
including stipe; fronds variously shaped, but mostly broadly fan-shaped in 
outline, 6-8 lines long, 9-10 lines broad at top, divided into two main 
branches, each being dichotomous and sub-imbricate, angles of sinuses 
very obtuse, spreading ; segments 1 line broad, mostly dilated with very large 
margins above forks, and deeply emarginate at tips, margins finely serrated 
extending down the decurrent wings of stipe, nerves thick throughout, not 
pereurrent to tips; colour a light reddish- or lurid-green, cellules large - 
oblong ; stipe 1-1} inches long, stout, sub-flexuose, broad and compressed 
and winged above, sub-cylindrical below, stoutly 2-nerved, sometimes 3- 
nerved above ; fructification on upper surface of frond in the main forks ; 
involucre a rather broad trifid or deeply 3-laciniate scale with jagged mar- 
gins ; sometimes 8-4 observed on a frond, but invariably only one bearing 
a calyptra; calyptra large, tubular, 8-31 lines long, slightly contracted at 
base, dilated and fimbriate at mouth, of a similar dirty-reddish hue as the 
frond ; antheridia on separate and narrower fronds, rather loosely scattered 
in lines on both sides of main nerves under broad acuminate jagged scales. 
Hab. Clay banks lower sides of deep water-courses, shaded forests, 
Seventy-mile Bush, Waipawa County, 1878-1881: W.C.  - 
Obs.—This species is one of the largest and the coarsest-looking of all 
our known stipitate New Zealand species. I have long known it, but 
hitherto I have refrained from describing it in hopes of getting better speci- 
mens,—i.e., more perfect in fruit. The calyptre of this plant often seem as 
if gnawed by some small insect. It appears to be pretty closely allied to 
S. hymenophyllum, Mont., and also to S. rugulosa, mihi, in its general 
appearance, but this latter species has entire margins, etc. 
5. S. simplex, sp. nov. 
Plant dicecious ; frond stipitate, erect, with no indication of a rhizome, 
simple, of varied outline mostly linear and sublinear-ovate, sometimes 
broadest at base and then deltoid-acuminate and subtruncate, 1-2} inches 
long including stipe, 14-2 lines broad in the broadest part, slightly repand 
and waved, very thin, pale green, margins entire, emarginate at apices, 
mostly narrowly and very gradually decurrent half-way down stipe, midrib 
narrow, very prominent and keeled on both surfaces, light yellow-brown, 
, 
not continued to tip, but continued downwards as a nerve within to the 
