1876.] Knowledge oftlie Fossil Flora in India. 355 



Order SPHENOPTEEIDES (eae.) 



This order is especially developed in the carboniferous epoch, where we 

 find forms with leaflets and fronds of the most different shapes. 

 The following genera have been distinguished — 

 Splienopteris, Bgt. 

 Hymenophylliles, Bgt. 

 Tricliomanites, Bgt. 

 Scliizopteris, Bgt. 

 But there is no great difference between Ilymenopliyllites and Tricho- 

 onanites, and we already find in Mr. Geinitz's ' Steinkohlen Deutschlands' 

 some Tricliomanites ranged with Ilymenopliyllites, also Scliizopteris placed 

 with the Splienopterides. With this I perfectly agree, as I will show 

 further on. 



D. Stur (in Vienna) for a long time considered Scliizopteris as belong- 

 ing to the Neuropierideae. 



The Splienopterides have as their analogues in the existing flora 

 the genera Gymnogramme, Notoclilaena, Clieilantlies, Davallia, Dicksonia, 

 Aneimia, etc. 



Schimper, in his ' Palaeont. veget.', used these living affinities to form 

 as many subgroups of Splienopteris as there are names of living genera 

 analogous to it, as follows : — 



Splienopteris Gymnogrammides. 

 Splienopteris Notoclilaenides. 

 Splienopteris Glieilantliides. 

 Splienopteris Davallioides, etc. 

 Everybody will acknowledge this to be very reasonable, but it has only 

 this one fault, that one is not always able to distinguish all the characters 

 by which a species should be ranged with a particular subgenus. 



Schimper distinguishes also a Splienopteris Tricliomanicles and Hyme- 

 nopliyllides, which, however, are not far from each other, and which are 

 better ranged with Ilymenopliyllites , Gopp. 



For Scliizopteris he establishes a new genus liliacopliyllum, as also 

 separates some types formerly referred to Splienoteris and places them in a 

 new genus JRliacopteris, Schimp. 



But some of these are certainly Splienopteris, although Mr. Stur in a 

 recent paper* again uses this name and places it with the Opliioglosseae. 

 I, however, think it is much better to keep them with Splienopteris too, and, 

 following Mr. Schimper, to make a special subgroup of Splienop>teris, 

 as they show a great affinity with this fossil genus and one otherwise 

 would consequently have to place all the others in the living families also. 



* Culmflora des Mahrisch-Sclilesisclien Dachschiefers, Abh. der K. X. Gcol. 

 Reichsanstalt in Wien, 1875. 



