Character of two Genera of African Reptiles. 141 



Alopecurus fulvus. — A careful examination of this plant and A. 

 geniculatus, lias shown me the following distinctions between them : 



A. fulvus. — Flowers one-third less than those of A. geniculatus ; 

 palea as long or longer than the glumes; awn inserted just below 

 the middle of the palea, and slightly longer than it ; anther short 

 and broad. Sheaths of the leaves white between the ribs, with very 

 minute hoary granules. Panicle very long. 



A. geniculatus. — Palea shorter than the glume ; awn inserted near 

 to the base of the palea, and twice its length; anther linear. Sheaths 

 of the leaves without hoary granules. Panicle shorter. 



Festuca duriuscula, y. hirsuta. P. hirsuta, Host. ? — Root black, 

 fibrous. Radical leaves setaceous, glaucous, half as high as the 

 stem ; stem leaves iuvolute ; sheaths three or four times as long as 

 the leaves. Stem obsoletely quadrangular, covered with very mi- 

 nute down. Spikelets four or five-flowered. Glumes hairy ; ex- 

 ternal palea very densely pubescent, internal glabrous, with its 

 margin ciliated ; anthers two or three times as long as their fila- 

 ments. 



I have drawn up the above description of this plant on account of 

 its not having been noticed in any work on the plants of this coun- 

 try. Gathered on the summit of Pen y Gader, the highest summit 

 of Cader Idris, Wales, July 1832. 



Poli/podium calcareum — may always be distinguished from P. dry- 

 opteris by being minutely mealy in all its parts. Each particle of 

 this mealiness, under a high magnifying power, appears to be a mi- 

 nute stalked gland. I have not been able to find any trace of this 

 on P. dryopteris. 



IV. — The Characters of two new Genera of South African Reptiles, 

 with descriptions of species belonging to each. By Andrew 

 Smith, M. D., M. W. S., &c. 



In the year 1825, I first obtained the Cape species of the genus 

 * Chrysopelea, and on examining it, I observed some peculiarities of 

 formation which were not exhibited by any of the genera of serpents 

 with which I was acquainted. From that circumstance, I was im- 

 mediately led to set it apart as a type for an additional division, and, 

 from the singular manner in which the abdominal plates were form- 

 ed or apparently divided, I constructed the term Aspedotrischedis 

 to designate the new genus. 



Soon after that I had a visit from my late friend, the lamented 

 M. Boie, on his way to Java, when I substituted the name Clin/- 



