GENERA AND SPECIES. 107 
PrAars XL; 
ONOCLEA. Linnzus. 
GEN. CHAR.—Fruit-dots round, one on the middle of each pri- 
mary vein, soon confluent ; sterile and fertile fronds unlike, the latter 
much contracted ; indusium very thin, attached by its lower side, 
opening toward the apex of the pinnule; veins finely reticulated. 
This is a very distinct and well-marked genus, charac- 
terized by its having the sporangia incased within berry- 
shaped, closed involucres, formed from the revolute pin- 
nules. ‘The fertile frond is erect, growing from the center 
of the tuft, bearing its fruit-capsules in a one-sided spike 
or raceme. ‘The long-stalked sterile fronds are triangular 
in outline, and are given off separately from the creeping 
root-stock. 
In general appearance it does not resemble any of the 
rest of the Polypodiacez, the fertile fronds especially differ- 
ing widely from those of other members of the group. 
The peculiar character of the sporangia, however, with 
their vertical incomplete ring, fixes beyond question its 
place in this natural sub-order. The figures which I have 
presented are all taken from the excellent work by Hooker 
and Bauer. I regret that the smallness of the Plate did 
not permit me to give the entire series of magnified veins. 
Figure 1 represents the fruit-bearing portion of the fer- 
tile spike, natural size; figure 2, an upper view of a fertile 
pinnule; figure 3, an under view of the same, showing the 
sporangia through the membranaceous indusium; figure 4, 
the sporangia bursting open. 
