230 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [OCTOBER 
of southern Europe, Asia Minor, Japan, and the central states of the United 
States. This zone follows approximately the fortieth degree of northern 
latitude, and indicates an annual average temperature of 12-14°C. Since the 
Miopliocene, during which the fossil plants of Varennes lived, the most of its 
components have emigrated toward the south. The plant deposits of Varennes 
accumulated in a lake, into which the ashes of a volcano fell.—A. C. No 
Fossil plants from Missoula region—A paper by JENNINGS® deals with 
some fossil plants from beds which are believed to be of Oligocene age. The 
fossil plants consist of impressions of leaves and of leafy twigs, there being 
also some impressions of fruits and leafless twigs. The Missoula specimens 
are embedded in fine-grained volcanic ash which preserved the finer venation 
of the leaf surfaces. Twenty-one species are enumerated, ten of which are 
described as new, and one of which required a new name. Of the fifteen genera 
represented in the Missoula flora, all but two are also represented in the 
Florissant Basin of Colorado. The Missoula flora probably occupied the shores 
and surrounding slopes of a high mountain lake. The climate was warmer, 
and probably drier than that now prevailing at recent localities of similar 
geographic position, like, for instance, the Flat Head Valley; and the vegetation 
represented by the Missoula fossils ranged probably throughout a series of 
associations from wet meadow to moderately xerophytic oak forests on rocky 
or sandy shores. All of these vegetational associations were in close proximity 
to the waters of a lake. There are eleven plates with excellent illustrations 
in the book.—A. C. Nok. 
_ Cycadofilicales——CaRPENTIER®’ presents a most interesting paper on 4 
series aa Cycadofilicales fructifications which were from the Lower Carbo- 
niferous of northwestern France. Two genera of seeds (Lagenospermum and 
Carpolithus) have been observed, and in a number of instances pictured also- 
Sporangia or microsporangia of Telangium, Pterispermotheca, and Diplotheca 
are described. CARPENTIER concludes that the small seeds of Lagenospermum 
and of related genera seem to have belonged to Sphenopteris, probably S. 
Hoeninghansi and S. elegans. While the occurrence of Sphenopteris together 
with seeds of Lagenospermum is frequent in the Westphalian of northern 
France, the seeds of Neuropterides, which occur frequently in the Bassin de 
Valenciennes, are very rare in the Bassin de la Basse-Loire. CARPENTIER 
also emphasizes that our knowledge of the microsporangia of the Cycadofilicales 
of Mouzeil and the Bassin de la Basse-Loire is still very rudimentary, only 
fragments of male inflorescences having been discovered. ‘They seem to have 
been of a very delicate structure. Telangiwm, or a nearly related genus, 
3 JENNINGS, O. = Fossil plants from the beds of volcanic ash near Missoula, 
Western Montana. em. Carnegie Museum 8:385-427. pls. 22-23. 1920. 
3C gowns a l’étude des fructifications du Culm de Mouzeil 
(Loire-inférieure). can Gen. Bot. 32:337-349. 1920 
