Xvi PERMIAN FOSSILS. 
Russia, and its southern boundaries, apparently stretching far into the south of 
Europe. It is unsafe to speculate further on the extent of area overspread by the 
Ocean during the Permian period. Rocks said to contain Permian Fossils have been 
discovered in various parts of Asia; and others, supposed to agree in their organic 
contents with the English deposits, have been found in Nova Scotia. It would thus 
appear, that the Permian Ocean has been of vast extent,—encompassing a great 
portion of the Northern hemisphere. | 
As the Permian system immediately succeeded the Carboniferous, and was 
directly followed by the Triassic, it is reasonable to conclude, that the assemblage of 
organic remains characteristic of the first, in addition to its containmg several new 
forms, embraced many which are identical with, or allied to, such as belong either to 
one or the other of the two latter systems. As regards their Flora, a comparison 
cannot be well entered into, in consequence of the comparative paucity of vegetable 
remains in at least one of the systems. The known plants of the Permian rocks 
consist of A/ge, Lepidodendrons, Calamites, Sigillarias, Ferns, and some doubtfully 
allied forms, termed MNeggeratlia. The Alge of the Carboniferous rocks are not 
sufficiently known to be compared with the numerous Caulerpa-like Fossils which are 
met with in the Mergerl-schiefer, and its English equivalent: the genus Chondrus 
apparently characterises both the lowest and the highest member,— Chondrus Binneys 
having been found in the former, and C@. virgatus, Minster, also a Kupfer-schiefer 
plant, in the upper-Zechstein of Altenburg. The existence of Lepidodendron—a 
common carboniferous group—has undoubtedly been continued into the Permian 
period : a well-marked species occurs in the bituminous Mergerl-schiefer of Ruppers- 
dorf, in Silesia: Brongniart notices two species as occurring in Russia; anda specimen 
of the genus has also been found in the subordinate sandstone at Westoe, in Durham. 
Calamites are somewhat common; three species having been found in the Todte- 
hegende, near Oschatz ; one, in the corresponding rock at Westoe ;} and four more in 
Russia. Ferns are more numerous: Professor Naumann has discovered several 
species near Oschatz ; Major Gutbier, and others, have noticed many more found in 
Saxony. Fischer de Waldheim, Morris, and Brongniart, have made out nineteen 
species occurring in Perm: beautiful specimens of several others occur in Silesia; 
and a single one (Vewropter:s Huttoniania) characterises the Marl] slate of Durham: 
but, on the whole, only a generic relation can be established between them and the 
numerous Ferns which vegetated during the Carboniferous epoch,—WVeuwropteris tenuifolia 
found in the mines of Santagulova being the only one as yet identified with a Coal- 
measure species.” Psaronius, and some other genera of the sub-class /licales, found 
1 Professor Sedgwick notices ‘‘ traces of calamites’” occurring in the lower New Red Sandstone of Cum- 
berland. (Vide Proceedings Geol. Soe., vol. i, p. 344.) 
2 Carboniferous species of plants have been found in the (?) Triassic beds of Savoy. (Vide postea, p. xvi.) 
