THE FERN- ALLIES OF THE MALAY PENINSULA. 15 5 



21. S. argentea, Spring Mon. ii. 150. S. caulescens, Spring var. 

 argentea. Bak. Fern- Allies, p. 94. 



Stem erect not branched below, with distant appressed 

 leaves, deltoid and decompound above, 8-10 in. across, with 

 several branches, branchlets 3 in. long, branched again 1 in. 

 and pinnules 25 in. long. Leaves lower plane oblong, rhom- 

 boid, blunt, very small and numerous, close set, shining green 

 above, silvery beneath. Upper plane, leaves very close imbri- 

 cating small in 2 rows, oblong, short, cuspidate. Spikes .5 

 in. long, square, slender. Bracts lanceolate, ovate acuminate. 



Woods. 



Penang, Waterfall. Abundant (Curtis and all collec- 

 tors) : Lankawi, Telaya Tujoh (Eidley 15673). 



Distrib. Celebes. 



22. S. caudata, Spring Mon. ii. 139. S. canaliculata, Bak. Journ. 

 Bot. 1885, p. 21. Fern-Allies, p. 91 (in part). 



Stems suberect 2-4 ft. long, deeply grooved above. Leaves 

 on stem distant. Branches diffuse 4-9 or more in. long, often 

 distant, branchlets about 1 in. long with 4 or fewer secondary 

 branchlets simple or forked .5 in. Leaves, lower plane dis- 

 tant on branches imbricating on branchlets, rhomboid oblong, 

 tip subacute, base slightly cordate with a short lobe on lower 

 base not imbricate over stem, of upper plane obliquely oblong 

 nearly blunt strong keeled. Spikes slender, square .25 in. 

 long. Bracts short, ovate, subacute. 



Perak, Chanderiang (Kunstler 5786). 



Distrib. Indo-Malaya, Polynesia. 



Note. — As Spring says this is not easy (at least in the her- 

 barium) to separate from laevigata. It has a much shorter 

 stem and does not climb like laevigata and the leaves are 

 pointed at the tips, the stem leaves are also much bigger, 

 some of Spring's plants are undoubtedly laevigata. Baker's 

 canaliculata is a mixture of several species. 



23. S. laevigatum, Spring, Mon. ii. 137 (not of Baker). S. Will- 

 denowii, Bak., Gard. Chron. 1867, 950. 



A long climber forming thickets often 30 or more feet 

 long. Stem grooved. Pinnae deltoid 4 in. long with numer- 

 ous" branchlets with 1-3 branches .5 in. long. Leaves of the 

 lower plane rigid, rhomboid, oblong, .8 in. long, blunt, base 

 with a minute lobe as in caudata, midrib prominent. Leaves 

 of the upper plane very small close set, imbricating oblong 

 oblique. Spikes .25 in. long, subterete. Bracts very short, 

 ovate, subterete. Bracts very short, ovate, subacute, broad. 

 Sporanges large. Common ail over open country, forest edges 

 and cleared spaces in forest. Troublesome to get through as 

 the stems are rough from the base of the leaves. 



R. A. Soc, No. 80, 1919. 



