xlvi. GEKBEA or PEEirS : 



confluent. Veins arouately anastomosing at the base, fonning 

 costal areoles; venules simple or forked, parallel; oonniyent with 

 the thickened margin. 



Fronds rigid sub-coriaceons, pinnate, becoming pinnato-pin- 

 natifid. Rhizome arborescent, three or four feet high. — This ele- 

 gant and interesting tree fern strongly resembles Sadleria, a 

 genus of io!M«rJe(E, the diiferences being that it has short, instead 

 of elongated sori, which are quite naked instead of being indu- 

 siate, and are sometimes continued up the oblique yeins, instead 

 of being strictly confined to the costal line. It seems to us to 

 connect the LmnariecB, through WoodwardietB, with the Menis- 

 ciere, among which we place it in consequence of its short, 

 transverse, naked sori. 



Ex. : B. insignis, J", Sm. (Bowringia, Sooh.J 



(b) Venules regularli/ anastomosing transversely hetween the 

 pinnate pa/rallel veins. 



59. MENISCIUM:, Schreber, Lin. Qen. PI. ed. 8., ii. 757. 

 PoLTPODn sp., lAiinasits ; AspiiEini sp., tfacqnin. 



Sori non-iudusiate, linear-oblong, curved, often becoming con- 

 fluent ; the receptacles seated on the transverse parallel-curved 

 venules, between the primary veins. VeiTts pinnate from a central 

 costa, prominent ; venules angularly or arcuately anastomosing 

 between the veins, producing an excurrent free sterile veinlet 

 from the apex of the arc or angle. 



IVonds herbaceous or sub-coriaceous, simple or pinnate. 

 Bihizome creeping. — ^A tolerably well-marked genus ; never- 

 theless sometimes approaching the Acrosticheie by the partial 

 contraction of the fertile fronds, and the consequent crowding 

 of the sori. It is connected with the Polypodiece, through those 

 species of Chniopteris which have two contiguously-placed series 

 of sori between their principal veins. One of the most remark- 

 able species is the M. gigantevm of Mettenius, from Peru, 

 which has large simple fronds crowded with sori. 



Ex. : M. triphyllum, Sm. 



M. reticulatum, Schreh. 

 M. longifrons, Wall. 



M. giganteum, Jlett. 

 M. cuspidatmn, SI. 

 M. salicifolium, Ji'all. 



