156 
THE FERNS OF SOUTH AFRICA 
in pairs, but other fronds on the same plants have the pinnae 
cut halfway to the rachis into irregular, bifid, four-toothed, 
overlapping lobes, or toward the base cut nearly to the rachis 
into overlapping, cuneate, flabellate pinnules, toothed on the 
outer edge; teeth blunt, in pairs. Sori very irregular, generally 
extending from near the mid-rib to the base of the sinus, or 
with shorter ones up in the lobes. Adventitious buds occur 
irregularly on the upper surface of the frond; often several on 
a frond. 
This form is not very permanent, and consequently not 
satisfactorily distinct from A. gemmiferum , appearing inter- 
mediate between it and var. discolor , though no further grada- 
tion in that direction has been seen. Schlechtendal’s tab. 14, 
fig. b, belongs to this species, though named A. lucidum 
Forst. var. 
A. flexuosum Schrad. Schl. Adum. 29 ; Pappe and Rawson, App. 
No. 3; Hk. and Bkr, Syn. Fil. 208. 
Knysna (Holland); Grahamstown (Dr Atherstone). 
Kaff. — Komgha (Flanagan) ; Perie ; rare. 
Rhodesia. — Chirinda Forest, 4000 ft (Swynnerton, 844 and 844 a); 
Umtali (Mrs Bennett). 
Var. 7. DISCOLOR. 
Plate 59. Nat. size. 
Habit similar to A. gemmiferum, but smaller; frond not 
exceeding two feet, with a black or greenish-black rachis and 
stipe, and gemmiferous below the terminal pinna. Pinnae cut 
throughout to a widely margined rachis into distant cuneate 
pinnules one to two lines broad at the base, two to five lines 
broad above, glaucous on the under surface. Upper pinnules 
two-toothed, lower bifid, and with each lobe two-toothed, or 
the lower one on the upper side even more divided or flabel- 
late, pinnatifid. Sori two to three lines long, almost marginal, 
extending along the upper base of a pinnule from near the 
mid-rib ; sometimes also there are short marginal sori along 
the sinus which divides the pinnule into two lobes. This is a 
very distinct form, and I have seen no gradation toward var. 
flexuosum. If none such occur it ought to stand as a species, 
and be placed in section Darea, near A. flaccidum Forst. 
