BRITISH HEPATIC^, 7S 



X. ScApANiA, Bumort. 



Jungermannice sp. Lin. Sp. PI. I. ed. ii. p. 1132 (1753). 



Bichardsoniece sp. (haud L. et Kunth) Neck. Elem. Bot. iii. p. 337 (1790). 



Gimdollem sp. Eaddi(iiec.Za6i«.1805) Jung. Etr. in Mem. Soc. Moden. p. 22 (1820). 



Mm-tiiiellii sp. Gray, Nat. Arr. Brit. PI. i. p. 690 (1821). 



Raduhz sp. Dumort. Comm. Bot. p. 112 (1822) : Sect. 2, Scapmia, Dumort. Syll. 

 Jung. Eur. p. 38, t. 1, f. 6 (1831). 



Scapania, Dumort. Eev. des Jung. p. U (1835) ; Montague in Voy. Astrolab. 

 t. 16 (1842) ; Lindenb. in G. L. N. Syn. Hep. p. 61 (1844). 



Plagiochila, Sec. 2, Scapania, N. ab Es. in Lindl. Intr. Nat. Syst. Bot. 2nd ed. 

 p. 414 (1835) ; et Naturg. Eur. Leberm. iii. p. 518 (1838). 



Dioicous. Colesule terminal, smooth, obovate, compressed from 

 before backwards, from a contracted ventricose base ; mouth trun- 

 cate, bilabiate, entire or toothed,' decurved. 



Involucral bracts two, free, resembling the ordinary leaves, but 

 more equally lobed. 



Capsule ovate, of thick texture, cleft to the base into four equal 

 valves. 



Elaters attached to the centre of the valves, long, bispiral. 



Androecium terminal or interrupted. Perigonial leaves smaller, 

 ventricose at the base, the lobes shorter and nearly equal. 



Antheridia (3-12) axillary, oval, seated on a slender pedicel. 



Plants growing in woods, on moist rocks, or boggy places. 

 ^ Tufts conspicuous. Primary shoots creeping, perennial, naked, 

 rhizomatous, entangled. Secondary shoots foliose, ascending, de- 

 curved at the apex, simple or dichotomously branched. 



Leaves distichO'declinate, alternate, conduplicate, unequally 

 bilobed ; inferior lobe larger, convex, superior (lobule), incumbent : 

 margins entire, dentate or ciliate. 



Amphigastria wanting. 



Mym. — Froin XxaTravlov, a shovel, alluding to the form of the 

 colesule. 



Obs. — I have already, under Plagiochila (p. 62), stated my reasons for retaining 

 Dumortier's nomenclature, rather than that of Gray. 



The credit of first proposing Scapania as a distinct genus has generally been 

 assigned to Lindenberg^Monogr. Plagioch., 1843), whilst, in the Synop. Hepat. (1844), 

 the initials of Nees ab Es. are placed after the majority of species. 



But from a comparison of the dates, it will be seen how little justice was done to 

 Dumortier, who not only originated the name, in the first instance as a section of 

 Badula (Syll. Jung., 1831), but stibsequently (E.ev. Jung., 1835) elevated it to generic 

 rank, adding a list of the known species. Tn the Hepaticse Europse (1874:) Scapania 

 is placed under Tribe V. Eadulese, along with Eadula, Plagiochila, and Adelanthus, 

 between Tribe IV. Jubulese, and VI. Jungermanniese. The characters of the genera 

 are derived altogether from the fructification, unlike the plan followed in the Sylloge, 

 where the habit was also considered, and the species were grouped under three divi- 

 sions, with 1. folia incurrentia (incuba, N. ab E.) ; 2. folia transversalia j and 3. folia 

 subcurrentia (succuba, N. ab E.). 



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