20 
THE BOOK OF 
FERN HUNTING. 
IN view of the immense number of varietal forms which our 
British species have assumed, and the fact that a very large 
proportion, numbering among them many of the finest, have 
originated in a wild state and been found by persons who have 
devoted their leisure to close inspection of the Ferns they 
have come across, or in rarer cases, altogether accidentally, 
we may well devote a short chapter to the consideration of 
this singular capacity for variation and the circumstances under 
which such sports are found. Judging by the results of Fern 
hunting in the British Isles as contrasted with the relative 
paucity of foreign finds, it would prima facie appear that there 
must be a special something in the soil, climate, or general 
environment which leads to greater sportiveness, but as against 
this theory it must be borne in mind that in no other country 
has there sprung up a special taste for variety hunting, 
which, as here, has led to a considerable number of both 
sexes assiduously searching for new ones after having been 
inspired by distinct finds with that faith which is the best 
encouragement to perseverance. On the average many 
thousands of normal Ferns must pass beneath the scrutiny of 
the hunter or huntress (for ladies have been particularly 
fortunate) before a distinct sport presents itself, and obviously 
the first step necessary for a beginner is to acquire a thorough 
acquaintance with the normal forms, so that any departure is 
instantly noted and followed up by closer inspection. It very 
frequently happens that in a dense clump of rank-growing 
normals the merest tip of a frond or fronds indicates the 
presence therein of a variety, and it may even occur that 
one species may assume a varietal form closely resembling a 
different species of another shape and thus baffle the eye. 
Thus we have found two forms of Athyrium (Lady Fern), 
one which we named A. f. f. o-eopteroides, so closely did it 
imitate the mountain Lastrea (L. oreopteris or montana) which 
grew in conjunction, and the other we took at a first glance 
for Lastrea dilatata, the fronds being quite triangular (A. f. f. 
deltoideum), especially as L. dilatata was abundant in the 
same spot. The texture alone determined the second look, 
which discriminated them as marked varieties. Both these 
would infallibly have been overlooked had not experience 
educated the eye to relatively minute differences. 
Another point with reference to the greater number of 
British finds is that in many countries it is not so easy tc> 
