Colenso. — On the Botany of New Zealand. 355 



8. S. longistipa, sp. nov. 



Plant terrestrial, gregarious, stipitate, erect, rising from a slender and 

 long rhizome, roots wiry, fronds generally 3-1 near each other, of irregular 

 shapes and sizes, usually broadly sub-flabellate in outline, 6-9 lines broad, 

 4-8 lines long, forked, sometimes trifid and almost pinnate-pinnatifid, pinnae 

 on long slender branchlets or petioles, segments short, fiat, broadly sub- 

 lanceolate-linear, sinuses round, margins entire, rounded at tips and deeply 

 emarginate, not decurrent on stipe nor on branchlets ; stipes lj-lf inches 

 long, slender, subfiexuose ; whole plant darkish green ; involucre on lower 

 surface immediately above forkings, double — the outer scale being very 

 large, loose and flabellate, margins entire, the inner scale much smaller 

 and laciniate — several fruiting involucres on a frond, often four on a small 

 frond all bearing fructification ; calyptra white, cylindrical, transparent, 

 3 lines long, glabrous, mouth dilated, slightly laciniated or bifid, and finely 

 and regularly toothed ; seta 1-1| inches long, slender ; capsule large, cylin- 

 drical, linear, abounding after bursting in dark-brown elaters, which often 

 remain hanging in pencilled masses ; valves long, linear ovate, bordered ; 

 spores green ; antheridia scattered beneath on the stipe, midrib aud veins, 

 under rather large open jagged scales. 



Rah. On soil, margins of water-courses, deep ravines, shady woods, 

 near Norseweod, 1883 : W.C. 



Obs. — A plant having close natural affinity with the preceding (S. mega- 

 lolepis), but differing from it in several characters. 



9. S. prolifera, sp. nov. 



Plant terrestrial, prostrate creeping, csespitose, imbricated in growth, 

 rooting at middle and tip of fronds, and thence sending forth other fronds ; 

 fronds very irregular of various shapes and lengths, but flat, mostly linear 

 and very narrow, 1-3 inches long, 1-3 lines broad, obtuse, sometimes ovate- 

 acuminate, 2-3 leaf-like fronds issuing from near base of the short stipe, 

 fragile, irregularly sinuate and serrate, very thin, transparent and pale 

 green, midrib stout with fine short hair-like rootlets scattered below: fruc- 

 tification arising from midrib on upper surface, 1-2 on a frond, pretty close 

 together or scattered ; involucres very small, narrow, jagged, sometimes 2 

 scales or bifid ; calyptra cylindric, 2-3 lines long, whitish, lacerate at mouth 

 and slightly fimbriate ; peduncle slender, weak, 1 inch long ; capsule linear, 

 cylindric, 1 line long, brown ; valves cohering at tips ; elaters and spores 

 numerous, rich red-brown ; spores circular, plain ; cellules very small, oblong 

 and irregular in size. 



Hab. In rich black mould, wet shady woods, Seventy-mile Bush, 

 near Norsewood, 1879-1882 (rarely in fruit) : W.C. ; and at Glenross, 1883 

 (fruiting plentifully) : Mr. D. P. Balfour. 



