A HISTORY OF DEVONSHIRE 



The bracken [Pteris aquilind) and the hard-fern {Lomaria Spicant) 

 are common and abundant in all the districts ; each is represented by 

 several named varieties. 



The parsley fern {Cryptogramme crispa) was found by N. Ward in 

 1840 virithin 6 miles of Lynton, but only one plant was then seen ; it 

 has also been recorded from the neighbourhood of Glenthorne about the 

 same distance from Lynton on the authority of W. S. Hore and from 

 Challacombe, all in the Barnstaple botanical district ; in recent years it 

 has been found about Chagford on the north-east side of Dartmoor. 



Among the spleenworts the wall-rue {Asplenium Ruta-muraria) , the 

 English maiden-hair {A. Tr/c/So/wawf-j), the black spleen wort {A. Adiantum- 

 nigrum), and the lady fern {A. Filix-foemina), with several varieties, are 

 common and generally distributed ; as varieties of the last A. rhaticum is 

 recorded for Barnstaple, A. molle is said to be frequent, and A. tncisum is 

 reported from the parishes of Marwood and Bittadon. The forked 

 spleenwort {A. septentrionale) was found by N. Ward in 1 840 in tolerable 

 quantity in the crevices of a loose stone wall facing the north at an 

 elevation between 1,000 and 1,100 feet in Countisbury parish near Glen- 

 thorne, also according to Ravenshaw by Miss Hill in the same locality in 

 1856, but it does not appear to have been seen there during recent years 

 and may perhaps be extinct; Mr. Moyle Rogers has recorded it as 

 having occurred in considerable plenty in 1881 on some high rocks 

 between Chudleigh and Dartmoor. The green spleenwort {A. viride) 

 is on record as having occurred more than thirty years ago on the moor 

 near the head of the river above Petertavy ; a specimen was seen and 

 examined by C. C. Babington who did not dispute the identification. 

 The sea spleenwort {A. marinum) is rather frequent along the maritime 

 rocks of both north and south Devon, but it is becoming comparatively 

 scarce through the greed of collectors ; the variety acutum has been 

 reported from Croyde in the parish of Georgeham. The spear spleen- 

 wort [A. lanceolatum) occurs in many stations in south Devon and less 

 frequently in north Devon, but in several places where it was formerly 

 quite plentiful it is now nearly or quite extinct through the action of 

 collectors and dealers. The rusty-back fern [A. Ceterach) is rather common 

 about Plymouth and in some other parts of south Devon ; in north Devon 

 it is local and rather rare, occurring in the parishes of Marwood, Kentis- 

 bury, Horwood, Fremington, Instow, Bideford, Buckland Brewer, Braun- 

 ton and (in 1882) in Barnstaple, all these in the Barnstaple district ; also 

 in Bishopsnympton in the South Molton district, and in Okehampton in 

 the Torrington district ; it has also been reported from Lynmouth. 



The hart's tongue [Scolopendrium vulgare) with numerous varieties 

 is very common and abundant, producing handsome effects in many 

 places. 



The bladder fern {Cystopteris fragilis) is very rare in the county ; 

 there are satisfactory records of it in the parish of Cornwood ; it is also 

 reported from Ilfracombe, Tiverton, St. Thomas, Lynton, Bickleigh and 

 Woodside near Plymouth ; the sub-species C. alpina has been reported 



98 



