III. — BOTANY 



Art. XLIII.- — On the Fresh-ivater Algffi of New Zealand. 

 By W. I. Spencee, M.E.C.S. England. 

 \Read before the Hawkers Bay Philosophical Institute, 11th July, 1881.] 

 Plate XXIII. 

 Eefeeence to Sir J. Hooker's "Handbook of the New Zealand Flora," pp. 

 645-646, will show how little attention has in this country been hitherto 

 bestowed upon one of the most beautiful orders of the vegetable kingdom. 

 And as one reads in paragraph after paragraph, in which the various tribes 

 of the fresh- water Algse are enumerated, such statements as "Very numer- 

 ous, not hitherto collected in New Zealand" — " This beautiful fresh-water 

 group has not hitherto been collected in New Zealand " — and again, " The 

 species are very numerous and have never been collected or studied in 

 New Zealand," one cannot help feeling that the reiteration suggests to the 

 naturalists of this colony a powerful incentive to undertake the systematic 

 study of this most remarkable and interesting order of plants. 



It is with much diffidence that I lay this paper before you to-night, 

 because I feel that I am treading upon unbroken ground, and that the sub- 

 ject is a vast one, involving for its complete investigation much study and 

 much time, neither of which I have been able to devote to it, and also the 

 consultation and comparison of many books which have not been at my com- 

 mand. Nevertheless, if my imperfect attempt has the result of drawing the 

 attention of some of the many able naturalists in this country to a hitherto 

 neglected section of its natural history, and of enlisting other and more 

 competent workers than myself m its investigation, I shall feel that the 

 object I proposed in drawing up this paper has been fully accomplished. 



The fresh-water Algae comprise a large proportion of the Chlorospermem 

 or Confervoidea ; the number of green Algae which are inhabitants of sea 

 water being comparatively small. They are to be found on damp ground, 

 under the drippings of water, in ponds, streams, waterfalls, even in hot 

 springs where the water has a nearly boiling temperature. They form a 

 green scum on walls, on the bark of trees, and on stones in damp weather — 

 in fact, given the one condition of fresh water moisture, they are almost 

 ubiquitous. Many are plainly visible to the naked eye, and may be seen float- 

 ing in water, either as scum, as compact green or purple masses, as skeins of 

 threads attached to stones, sticks, or water plants, or as a simple discolora- 



