THE 



AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SCIENCE 



[FOURTH SERIES. ] 



Art. X VII. — Studies in the Cyperacece ; by Theo. Holm. 

 IX. The genus Lipocarpha R.Br. With nine figures in 

 the text, drawn by author. 



The genus Lipocarpha was established by Robert Brown 

 upon some plants, which were formerly enumerated by Vahl 

 as species of Llypcelyptum. This latter generic name was, 

 however, a corruption of " Hypolytrum " a genus of Richard, 

 and since Vahl had included certain species under this, which 

 did not exhibit the generic character of Hypolytrum as under- 

 stood by Richard, Robert Brown transferred these to his new 

 genus Lipocarpha : L. argentea, L. sphacelata and L. fili- 

 formis. 



As regards the derivation of the name Lipocarpha, this is 

 not, as stated by American authors, derived from "\i7ro? fat 

 and fcdp<j)o<; chaff, from the thickness of the inner scales of 

 some species," but from u \l7T(o fall off, drop," "from the 

 whole of its squamse being deciduous " as already stated by 

 Robert Brown in the Botany of Congo ; furthermore the inner 

 scales are never " fat " but constantly membranaceous in the 

 species of Lipocarpha, hitherto known. Lipocarpha is a 

 small genus, containing only seven species according to 

 Bentham and Hooker, six of which are described by Bceckeler ; 

 in later years four more species have been recorded from West 

 Africa by Ridley. While the genus is chiefly tropical, Z. 

 maculata extends as far north as Virginia, and L. Sellowiana 

 as far south as Buenos Ayres. The habit of the species is 

 much the same, reminding one of Kyllinga, and they seem to 

 prefer damp or periodically inundated ground. Considered 



Am. Jour. Scl— Fourth Series, Vol. VII, No. 39.— March, 1899. 

 12 



