is so limited at present that few of us are prepared to name a 

 species with certainty until it has fruited. So greatly do the early 

 fronds of some species differ from the mature ones, that one may 

 easily confuse them with other species. This is especially true of 

 Dryopteris spinulosa and its varieties. The young fern must be 

 nearly a year old before we can be sure that it is not some other 

 member of the family. Another fern with even a more strik- 

 ing metamorphosis is Pella?a atropurpurea illustrated herewith. 

 The young plants (Fig. 1 ) have very thin fronds, roundish-heart- 

 shaped in outline and do not in the least resemble the thick heavy 

 fionds found on mature plants; (Fig. 3.) These juvenile, round- 

 leaved fronds do not fruit, though close beside them may be found 

 plants no larger with pinnate fronds bearing sporangia (Fig. 2.) 

 which shows that age and not size is responsible for the change 

 in outline. With a little care one may select a series of fronds 

 show ng just how the change is made. Starting with the cordate 

 fronds, we And the next inclined to become triangular or auricled 

 at base, and in subsequent fronds these auricles become distinct 

 pinnae. Later fronds show two pairs of pinna?, both apparently 

 derived from the terminal one, and it may well be questioned 

 whether the dozen or more pairs of pinna? sported by larger fronds 

 were not also derived in their turn from the single terminal pinna. 

 It is probable that investigation of the infant fronds of other spe- 

 cies will yield as interesting results. To the courtesy of Mr. C. E. 

 Waters, of Baltimore. Md., we are indebted for several valuable 

 notes on this subject, and also lor the specimens from which the 

 drawings for our illustrations were made. — IVillard N. Clute. 



HIS little plant grows within our range on high mountain 



tops, and was collected by the writer on the sub-alpine sum- 



* mit of Eoan Mt., N. C , this summer, at an altitude of 

 about 6,400 feet, 200 feet higher than Mt. WEshington. It grows 

 there in abundance, usually rooted under the edge of small rocks 

 or stones, and sending out stems which curve up and fork into 

 flat-topped clusters, the whole effect reminding one a little of tiny 

 candelabra. At first sight the plant might be mistaken for a 

 dwarfed form of L. lucidulum, the general structure and appear- 

 ance of the two being very similar, and the spores in both species 

 being borne in bright yellow sporangia in the axils of the upper 



LYCOPODIUM SELAGO L 



