90 THE BOTANICAL MAGAZINE. [Vol. xxxi. No. 363. 



former is doubtingly refered to L. tasmanica Hook, et Hary. 

 and the latter to L. virgata J. Ag.- by J. Agardh. I have not 

 seen Kutzing's type specimens of these two species. But as far 

 as the illustrations show, there seems a better reason in com- 

 bining them with the present. The type of L. tasmanica Hook . 

 et Hary. has not the stichidial ramulets, as a rule, in the 

 cymose manner as in L. heterocladia Hary. It is a noticeable 

 fact that the figure of L. excelsa Kutz. in Tab. Phyc, I.e., is 

 indeed applicable to the co-type of L. tasmanica Hook, et 

 Hary. in the Agardhian Herbarium, but better to the type of 

 L. heterocladia in the Herb. Trinity College, Dublin. L. virgata 

 J. Ag., in its description, appears to stand close b\' the present 

 species. But in the Agardhian Herbarium the specimens under 

 it are by no means uniform and specimens exactly similar to 

 some of them are found under Chondriopsis suboppositaj. Ag. ; 

 those from Cape of Good Hope are especially hardly distinct 

 from this species. Taking the original of L. obtusa var. virgata 

 Ag. as the type of L. virgata, the Australian plant may be 

 separated from it by having remarkably thick axial stem. Any- 

 how there are strong resemblances between L. heterocladia 

 Harv., L. Ragellifera J. Ag., L. corymbosa J. Ag., L. tasmanica 

 Hook, et Harv., L. paniculata J. Ag., L. obtusa var. squar- 

 rosa Grtin., L. obtusa var. majuscula Harv., L. virgata J. 

 Ag., L. excelsa Kutz., L. cymosa major Kutz and Chondriopsis 

 subopposita J. Ag. It is a hope of the present writer that a 

 botanist in a favourable position to study the types of these 

 species will try to sharply define them than they now stand. 

 Haryey 1 ) has already said : — " I fear the species of Laurencia 

 have been too much multiplied." 



The plant distributed as No. 1093, Phyc. Bor.-Amer., under 

 L. paniculata J. Ag., in the copy in m} 7 possession, is far from 

 the type of the species but may be safely identified with the 

 present. J. Agardh refers Kutzing's Tab. Phyc. XV, Taf. 72, 

 fig. a-b under L. arbuscula to this species. As he has already 

 remarked, the figure is shown with too regular pinnation to be 



1) Phyc. Austr., PI. 148 



