HEATH’S FERN PORTFOLIO. 
BRACKEN— aquilina. Fig, i. 
MOONWORT— lunaria. Fig. 2. 
ADD ERST vulgatum. Fig. 3. 
LITTLE ADDERSTONGUE— lusitamcum. Fig, 4. 
M ore familiar and abundant than any other fern, THE BRACKEN — Pteris aquilina 
— scarcely needs the briefest verbal description. Its fronds are herbaceous, deciduous, 
dark green, mostly triangular, and grow (from creeping rhizomas) from a foot to 
twelve in height. They are twice or thrice divided, according to their smaller or larger size. 
The pinnce, in opposite or alternate pairs on the rachis, are triangular near the base and 
lance-shaped higher up, and are again divided into lance-shaped more or less deeply cleft or 
smooth-edged pinnules, the divisions of the parts becoming less and less towards the frond 
apex. The spore cases occur in lines along the edges of the lobes, pinnules, or pinncs, according 
as they are lower or higher on the frond undersides. Indusia^ or coverings for the spore cases, are 
formed by the bent back leafy margins. Habitats. — Woods, stream banks, open heaths, and 
hedges. Distribution.— Africa, Altai Mountains, America (North and South), Azores, Bourbon, 
British Islands, California, Canaries, Caucasus, Canada, Ceylon, China, Europe generally, 
Guatemala, India, Java, Kamtschatka, Madeira, Mauritius, Mexico, the Oriental Archipelago, 
Penang, Pernambuco, Philippine Islands, Sandwich Islands, Senegambia, Siberia, Sierra Leone, 
and United States. 
A PRETTY and interesting, though an unpretending, little plant, THE MOONWORT — 
Botrychmm lunaria — is found from two to ten inches in length. A single frond only, combining 
a barren and a fertile part, springs from the brittle, succulent, fleshy rootstock. The barren or 
leafy part consists, above the stipes^ of pairs of crescent-shaped, entire pinnce. From it diverges 
the stem of the fertile part, at the upper portion of which are alternate stems of the grape-like 
clusters of globular spore cases. For the frond figured the Author is indebted to Professor Oliver, 
of the Kew Herbarium. Habitats.— Amongst grassy roots, on slightly elevated pastures, heaths, 
and moors. Distribution.— Altai Mountains, British Islands, Canada, Europe generally, 
Greenland, Himalayas, Kamtschatka, Newfoundland, Rocky Mountains, Siberia, Sitka, Tasmania, 
Ural Mountains, and Victoria. 
SIMPLER in form even than the Moonwort is THE ADDERSTONGUE — Ophioglossunt 
vulgatum the frond of which, usually found growing from four to twelve inches long, consists of a 
barren or leafy part and of a fertile one — the former being distinctly egg-shaped, and the latter 
having a stem sheathed by the base of the leafy part, and surmounted by a pointed fruit spike, 
consisting of two rows of rounded spore cases. Habitats. — Moist grassy places, on heaths, 
meadows, and moors. It should be looked for in damper and more loamy positions than the 
Moonwort, and at a less elevation than the latter. Distribution. — Africa, America (North), 
Australia, British Islands, Caucasian Mountains, East Indies, Europe generally, Kamtschatka, 
Mexico, New Holland, New Zealand, and Siberia. 
A BETTER description could scarcely be given of THE LITTLE ADDERSTONGUE 
■ Ophioglossum lusitamcum — than by saying that it is a diminutive likeness of the Adderstongue. 
Like the latter, it has a frond combining a barren or leafy part and a fruit-bearing spike ; but 
the leafy part is narrower in proportion than is that of Ophioglossum vtilgatum. It is about an 
inch altogether in length. For the specimen from which the figure is drawn the Author is 
indebted to Professor Dyer, of Kew Gardens. Habitats. — It is found growing amidst grass on 
commons, heaths, and meadows. Distribution.— Algiers, Azores, Canary Islands, Cape de Verde 
Islands, Dalmatia, France, Greece, Italy, Jersey, Madeira, New Zealand, Portugal, St. Helena, 
Sicily, Spain, Swan River, Tangiers, and Western Australia. 
