Filices Adansonianae. 
Von 
T. Nakai. 
Il. What is Dryopteris, Nephrodium, Polystichum and Aspidium® 
There are three big genera of Ferns which are closely related and 
whose names were much disputed: 
1. Stipes inarticulated. Indusium reniforme. 
PR, > Texture of frond rigid. Indusium peltate and 
round. 
3: » » Texture of frond more herbaceous. Indusium 
peltate, but more or less oblong. 
To denote the first group, Dryopteris is chiefly used at present. — 
Dryopteris was named by M. Avanson in his ‘Familles des plantes”, tome IL 
(1763) p. 20: «Paquets de fleurs ronds, disposés sur 2 rangs sous chaque 
division des feuilles. Enveloppe enparasal. Globules environés d’un anneau | 
élastique. » 
Above is all of his description. By »enveloppe enparasal« one can | 
better consider it as Aspidium or Polystichum. Scnorr used Dryopteris 
also in 1834 and A. Gray in 1856. Since then it has been long neglected 
till Orro Kuntze used it in 4891. Kuntze’s combinations are often too 
much for even a generous botanist, hence, if Mr. Curistensen had not used 
it again, and made the laborious combinations of his “Index Filicum’, Dry- 
opteris would have been buried eternally in the dust of synonyms. No | 
botanists have ever seen Apanson’s specimens, and even French botanists 
thought the “Familles des plantes” were almost descriptiones nudae. 
The specimens, however, were kept by his direct descendants, and his sons 
of 4th generation sold them to the ‘Muséum national d’histoire naturelle 
de Paris. Prof. H. Lecoure of the Museum sent M. Merman, préparateur 
du Muséum to Baleine near Moulins (Allier), where is the mansion of 
Apanson-family, to receive them. He brought them back to Paris in No- 
vember of 1923. This has given a light to the darkness of ADANSON’S 
