﻿THE PROTHALLIA OF OPHIOGLOSSUM VULGATUM 



Norma E. Pfeiffer 

 (with FOUR figures) 



The gametophyte of Opkioglossum was found first by Mettenius 

 in material of O. pedunculosum Desv. in the botanical gardens at 

 Leipzig, in 1856. Almost 50 years later, Lang collected pro- 

 thallia of O. pendulum in Ceylon, in the Barrawa Forest Reserve. 

 These were found to be developed in the humus between leaf bases 

 of an epiphytic Poly podium, and, as in the case of Mettenius, 

 were found growing spontaneously, but were not developed in 

 cultures from the spores. Later, Campbell found similar pro- 

 thallia in humus collected between leaves of Asplenium nidus in 

 Java. In 1906 he also collected prothallia of O. molluccanum at 

 Buitenzorg. In 1904, Bruchmann reported the finding of game- 

 tophytes of 0. vulgatum in nature. He worked over a considerable 

 period of time, free days from May to October, in isolating about 

 70 young prothallia, besides those with sporophytes, in a particu- 

 larly favorable region in the Thuringian Forest. The area con- 

 cerned was a depression surrounded by ash trees and alders. The 

 occurrence of so many specimens was attributed partly to the 

 protection against wind currents which might carry the spores 

 away, although the depression was subject to overflows from rains, 

 which might remove the spores also. Campbell considers the 

 latter of importance because of the possible effect of submergence 

 upon germination of spores. It would seem likely that this process 

 is favored by inundation. Bruchmann obtained the prothallia 

 by arduous labor, working over the soil between the mature plants. 

 That the prothallia are not numerous is evidenced by the small 

 return of two prothallia per working day. 



The situation in which the present growth of O. vulgatum 

 occurs is practically the low prairie type previously described for 

 Thismia americana. 1 The plants of Opkioglossum occur among the 



1 Pfeiffer, Norma E., Morphology of Thismia americana. Bot. Gaz. 57: 

 135- Pis. 7-11. 1914. 



Botanical Gazette, vol. 61] [518 



