( n ) 
MOONWORT. 
BOTRYCHIUM LUNARIA, 
Swartz, Hooker and Arnott, Babington, Moore, and Newman. 
(Plate X. Fig. 2 .) 
SYNONYM. 
Osmunda lunarii , Linnaeus. 
THE frond of this curious little fern rises earlv in 
the spring, and in its early stage would scarcely 
suggest the idea of a fern. An upright simple stem is 
the first appearance presented, which is, in fact, a bud 
inclosing the frond, or rather the two fronds, a fertile 
and a barren one, clasping each other. The stem is 
separated into two branches, one of which is spreading, 
leafy, and lance-shaped. The pinnae are obliquely 
fan-shaped or lunate segments, of a thick consistence, 
and entire or crenate. The fruitful branch of the 
stem is pinnate ; the pinnae generally corresponding 
in number to those of the leafy branch on which dis¬ 
tinct globular capsules are borne, which, when mature, 
open and allow the seeds to escape. Occasionally, 
but very rarely, two fertile branches are produced, 
and there is a variety in which the pinnae are 
pinnatifid. 
On dry open moors, among harebells and heather, 
this fern is not uncommon throughout the United 
Kingdom, but from its diminutive size it often escapes 
observation. In England it is chiefly found in the 
counties of Staffordshire, Surrey and Yorkshire, and 
