THE SEA SPLEENWORT. 
Asplenium marinum. — Linnaeus. 
A sea-side Fern, as its name denotes, but occasion- 
ally found inland ; a tufted evergreen species, erect or 
decumbent, the fronds growing usually six or eight 
inches long, linear or linear lanceolate, of the deepest 
glossy green, and of a leathery texture, with a stipes 
shorter than the frond, smooth, channeled in front, 
chestnut-coloured or purply-brown. The fronds are 
simply pinnate, with stalked pinnae, connected by a 
narrow wing extending along the rachis ; obtusely 
ovate or oblong, unequal at the base, the anterior base 
being much developed, while the posterior appears cut 
away, with the margin serrated or crenated. The 
venation is tolerably distinct : each pinnae has a mid- 
vein, giving off veins alternately on either side, branch- 
ing again into series of venules. The sori, lying 
obliquely on the anterior side of each venule, form two 
rows on each side of the centre ; oblong or linear, with 
persistent indusia opening along the anterior margin 
as the spores ripen. The chief variation of the Sea 
Spleenwort consists in the elongation of its parts, the 
pinnae sometimes tapering to a narrow point, some- 
times also being auricled at the base and deeply lobed. 
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