182 
ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 
quamoclit were to be recognized as the type of Ipomcea, the present genus 
Quamoclit 1 would have to take the name Ipomcea. This would cause a most 
sweeping change of names, which would be neither logical nor conductive to 
the future stability of its nomenclature. 
No historical review of the genus will be attempted here, but the cita¬ 
tions of species and synonyms is made as complete as possible, with the 
object of supplying the absence of a bibliography and historical sketch of 
the genus, and its divisions. The treatment of the genus Ipomcea in the 
following pages is in many respects similar to that of Choisy, 1 2 Meissner, 3 
Grisebach, 4 and Asa Gray. 5 The writer includes Batatas Choisy, Pharbitis 
Choisy, Leptocallis G. Don and Bombycospermum Presl, in Ipomoea; while 
the following genera are excluded as worthy of generic rank, Operculina 
S. Manso, Quamoclit (Tourn.) Moench, (inch Mina Llav. & Lex.), Exo- 
gonium Choisy, Calonyction Choisy, Turbina Raf. and Rivea Choisy. 
The writer is under deep obligations, for valuable suggestions and aid, 
to Dr. N. L. Britton of the N. Y. Botanical Garden; Dr. J. N. Rose and 
Mr. J. H. Painter of the U. S. National Museum; Dr. B. L. Robinson 
and staff of the Gray Herbarium of Harvard University. 
The revision of the genus here presented is based upon the collections 
in the following institutions, the letter preceding each being used to indi¬ 
cate the locations of the specimen in the citation of specimens in the following 
pages. 
(N). National Herbarium, U. S. National Museum, Washington, D. C. 
(Y). New York Botanical Garden, New York, N. Y. 
(C). Columbia University Herbarium in the N. Y. Botanical Garden. 
(G). Gray Herbarium of Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. 
(M). Museo Nacional Mexicana, Mexico City, Mex. (Herb. Manual 
Urbina). 
(J). Dept, of Agriculture, Jamaica; Hope Gardens, Jamaica, B. W. I. 
Synopsis of the genus Ipomcea. 
IPOMCEA L. Sp. PI. 159. 1753. 
Annual or perennial climbing or trailing vines or sometimes upright 
shrubby or tree-like plants. Leaves alternate; blades entire, angled, lobed 
1 Moench, Meth. 453. 1794. 
2 In DeCandolle Prodromus 9 : 335-396. 1845. 
3 Meissner, in Mart. FI. Bras. 7 : 200-370. 1869. 
4 FI. Br. West Indies, 466-476. 1861. 
6 Syn. FI. N. Am. 2 *: 207-224. 1878. 
