os ceayk pene . . 4 .: Ae ' ‘ da ty tilde ai sad i ae oe we Sean a alent 28, FEO 99 CANADIAN FILIGINEA. MACOUN & BURGESS. 1I8s4. Te Hy AN at wet aelv AS Re ey! Laie tocar aL OLATHE La m4" PA Wik a ae ‘ cee aaa Re 3 Tobie Praca. area icine ex ch ner losin, Weave ib AP bah A pie eel se aetlaayvdirn cabo bade Bl 4 7 ( eee aif velinipe ie ; Ik h behacal ya ied 5 Pa vif saAbabe wad Tinh Wrraten NW ve agen vey + y Pare oe. Seep yey ety =: Tete uh Ep ae x or - ', Va He png mes coh en pe ast y ; ANSAR Sp tee eT) RPve AV IVT NE SF ade Ne oe Co ee occ 5s) Aneto ee Sxction IV., 1884. [ 163 ] > TRANS. Roy. Soc. Ginn I RY Nu” Y® K BOTANICAL IX.—Canadian Filicinec. GARDEN By JoHN Macoun, M.A., F.LS., and my "“w! Buraess, M.B (Read in abstract May_23, 1884.) Probably no form of growth throughout the vegetable kingdom attracts more general attention than ferns, which, while appealing strongly- to the scientific tastes, have an equally powerful claim upon the artistic. Their distribution over the whole surface of the globe, with the exception of the sterile portions of the polar regions, places at least some forms within the reach of everyone, while, grow in what locality they may, there is none to which they do not lend an added charm. Of the home of these beautiful produc- tions of Nature, nowhere can we find a more charming description than that of Mr. F. G. Heath, who, in his introduction to “The Fern Foe speaks of it as “A world— apart—of dreamy beauty, of soft vapours and chequered sunbeams. A world—below the glare of noonday—filled with the most delicate and graceful of the forms which Nature’s God has made to clothe the earth with a mantle of green. A world where Nature’s own sweet music—the silvery music of the streamlet’s ripple—falls, gently cadenced, on the ear: or where the stillness of repose is unbroken, even by the hum of insect life. A world sometimes of darkness relieved but by the faintest gleam of light ; sometimes of open rocks and streams, where the roar of the torrent echoes over the mountain side, and rushing water reflects the golden colouring of the sun-rays. A fairy world hidden away under the covering of rugged rocks on the sea-shore, beneath moss- covered stones 1 in the river’s bed, or in the depths of the primeval forest.” The purpose of the present paper is to place before you a full though succinct account of such of these most interesting plants as are found within the confines of the Dominion. Twenty years ago there was published “A Synopsis of Canadian Ferns and Filicoid Plants,” containing brief descriptions, with the distribution, of all our then known species, since which time, so far as I am aware, no similar work has been undertaken. This valu- able paper, by George Lawson, Ph. D., LL.D., which appeared first in the Edinburgh “New Philosophical Journal” (January and April numbers, 1864, Vol. XIX, N. 8.), and in the Transactions of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh, (Vol. VIII, pp. 20-50), was reprint- ed the same year at Montreal, in the “ Canadian Naturalist,” (N. 8., Vol. I, No. 4, August, pp. 262-300.) The number of ferns, including Ophioglossacee, recorded in it was fifty, of which eight were considered of doubtful occurrence. Of these eight, three, Asplenium marinum, Asplenium montanum and Asplenium Ruta-muraria do not, as far as yet known, favour us; two, Schize@a pusilla and Woodsia obtusa, are confined to Nova Scotia, each having been discovered in a single locality only, and within the past few years; while the remaining three, Aspidium Filix-mas, Aspidium fragrans and Ophioglossum vulgatum, are now known in numerous districts. The forty-seven species to which Professor Law- ae 164 MACOUN AND BURGESS ON son’s list is thus curtailed, have been increased to sixty-four. Of the seventeen additions we are indebted to British Columbia, at the time of the publication of the synopsis almost a derra incognita as regards its floral treasures, for no less than nine, viz., Polypodium Scouleri, Polypodium falcatum, Gymnogramme triangularis, Cheilanthes gracillima, Pella densa, Lomaria spicant, Phegopteris alpestris, Aspidium rigidum, and Aspidium munitum ; three, Cheilanthes lanuginosa, Woodsia Oregana and Woodsia scopulina are common to British Columbia and the Northwest Territory; three, Cystopleris montana, Botrychium matricariefolium and Botrychium lanceolatum, range from Nova Scotia to Lake Superior and north-westward ; and two are furnished by the elevation to the rank of species, as Aspi- dium Boottii and Botrychium simplex, of plants recognized by Professor Lawson as varieties. The total of known species of Filices and Ophiogiossacez in the world at the present day is estimated to be about 3,000, of which the great bulk is tropical, and of this number the North American continent, north of the Mexican boundary, can claim to date only 166. Now, when we consider that nearly 100 of these are natives of the extreme Southern and South-western States, it will be seen that our working botan- ists have not been idle, and that Canada, considering the boreal nature of her climate, compares most favourably with the neighboring republic in the number of her ferns. To convey some idea of the distribution of our species, two tables have been prepared, the one showing their general range, the other their allotment as regards Canada. Table I is based on Mr. Redfield’s division (Torrey Bulletin, January, 1875,) of North American species into six great classes, viz :— “T. CoSMOPOLITAN.— Widely distributed over the globe in both temperate and tropical regions. 3 IJ. Borrau.—Inhabiting (with a few exceptions) the northern portion of the United States, extending through Canada and British America, some species even reaching Labra- dor, Greenland and Alaska, and nearly all represented also in the northern portions of the Old World. III. AppaLacuian.—Extending throughout the mountain and hilly region of the States east of the Mississippi, often to the coast, and northward into Canada, and in a few in- stances also inhabiting the Old World. IV. Pacitric.—Extending along the western border of the continent at points from Alaska to California, in a few cases appearing also in the Rocky Mountain region. V. New Mexican.—Inhabiting the central mountain regions of New Mexico and Col- orado, many of the species extending thence into Mexico, and some eyen to South Amer- ica, and a few of them also occurring in California. VI. Troprcan.—Inhabiting the border of the Gulf of Mexico, most of the species ex- tending into the West Indies and tropical America.” The sixth class, of course, does not concern us, and is only introduced to show the distribution in its entirety, while the fifth presents the solitary and anomalous Cheilanthes lanuginosa which, properly New Mexican in its range, extending in the United States from Illinois to Utah, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, unaccountably reappears in British Columbia and on the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains. The additional class intro- duced shows which of the species are peculiar to the North American continent. CANADIAN FILICINE®. Oo © i ale fs = S SPECIES, ge eee ne Si Ws ls Adiantum pedatum, D..... 2.00. ccvee |oseees|oocees 1 Aspidium acrostichoides, Swz..-..++++++ pondes|sqoo6e 1 Aspidium aculeatum, Swz...... pAacodsas|| cance A tale easbsa Aspidium Boottii, Tuckerman.......seee|seeees SED loeeeetass’s Aspidium cristatum, Swz...-...0+ssesee|erceceloccees 1 Aspidium Filix-mas, Swz.s...0. cesses ss|eceees iL ieeeoon Aspidium fragrans, Swz.......0sseeseesleoeens 1) Hlaconog Aspidium Goldianum, Hook......0..-0:|sece+e|se+eee 1 Aspidium Lonchitis, Swz........sessseeleceers il |cosaac Aspidium) marginale; Sz. <<. cees|escere|. oes 1 Aspidium munitum, Kavlf..... 0.0. ceeeeleceeee dees Clee, 54] Aspidium Noveboracense, Swz.esecessees|.cecrelecsees 1 JASSonGhiieey Teter MheE Nh 25900 dood aoeHsa|(a0d0Cn||Oc0b0u|}ooG00e Aspidium spinulosum, Swz......0seesees|ecrers 1 a0 Aspidium Thelypteris, Swz........sssseleee G00|lcooode 1 Asplenium angustifolium, Ma.........+.)seseee|eeeeee 1 Asplenium ebeneum, Ait.......+++..+5- scoddd]|ba0000 1 Asplenium Filix-foemina, Bernh........- i) lobcgne Asplenium thelypteroides, Mar......ssee|seeees|seeeee 1 Asplenium Trichomanes, L...........-. Te henna} sees Asplenium viride, Hudson. ..e.essceverelrerese i hsodeaa Botrychium lanceolatum, Angs......+e++\eceseel eee Seay) al Botrychium Lunaria, Swz.........sc0ee.| .+.+- 1 Botrychium matricarizefolium, A. Br....|.....- 1 Botrychium simplex, Hitch. ..........++|.-++++ 1. “poo0Ge Botrychium ternatum, Swz...-.-+...+.- Harstetetelel|eaerss 1 Botrychium Virginianum, Sw7z..0..00 seoe|ecveee|eosnee 1 Camptosorus rhizophyllus, Link.........|s.seesleseees 1 Cheilanthes gracillima, D. Cl Haton.....0|...eecleecceelecvers Cheilanthes lanuginosa, Nutt......00.0.+|seccee|roveve|sceces Cryptogramme acrostichoides, R. Br...++|..++++ I Aisgoog. Cystopteris bulbifera, Bernh....-... afew sia\|lerererelstei|[aetere sis 1 Carried Forward. -.s+02 cess. aster 11 as, tere enleacevcles Seas i oy saenee teen tenes serene twee seee 3 es G2 ~ . 8 Ss |S eae Ses lets ,sfejeccl| saecreiers 1 aac lives |beait Sate 1 ee eae 1 PAAGCONEROGES 1 ntereye/ale aiale it recs tae 1 ae |S 1 Te eaten 1 Patel Weneee 1 conn Mawes 1 1 @ Tat 165 166 MACOUN ‘AND BURGESS ON E g g gg SPECIES. = ~ Sula g % e§ S| A SR aloes Een Ve Brought forward .-cecsccesoes 2 11 15 3 E 1 0 ll Cystopteris fragilis, Bernhecseseseceveer| s+ sooth el Mlganadc [tteeee|eeceeeleeeeesleeeees Cystopteris montana, Bernh..s.cee ceeceeleceeee I WiSoanonl he cAa||nosanalloaoces piaraiaate Dicksonia pilosiuscula, Willd...+....eeesleeeees arerevaioya| (aed talatarate nllsponenieeaciac i Gymnogramme triangularis, Kaulf......|seecee|eeeeeeleees * 1 |eesecelivices vo |vceece Mona aria SpICALs, wL est sretelateleleisire/afareis/etete!si| sieteleleiel ielelatersi=y| sieteleterel liereteretere nidodo: sia‘efoinie Onoclea sensibilis, D...0..0. cesces ceveee sjeiaivie's |\sie'e:ein\e 1h) eStines||bearcd |decmos||aoon5- Onoclea Struthiopteris, Hoff...-.+++++eee|eccees TPM eae o60)socoan | docadal aanBas)|tsSdA0d Ophioglossum vulgatum, DL. ....0. cecess|secees|eee-ee ik Wacol Suuas 50 malate Gatarerete Osmunda cinnamomea, L......+ d.cccdda|louso6olladaccr DP | hedc.o5|lbernea| loooods) aocctc Osmunda Claytoniana, L....... se eeceesleeeceeleeeens 1 pple (Peace) Facs29 foro Osmuncdatrerallis: “Evaro mrete’slerastaraielaloim wie|ivicisjerelell ataletele its LSA RSE baer lool jeeock Pelleea atropurpurea, Link... +ss0ecescecaleecces|ececes 1 |tereseleececaleavees|nasiens Pella densa, Lookers sceicn eitackeeis ane | aa ceseal eeommel sstenes {RAR se eet eaete elf Wellkea eracilis; seLOOMale\cisle)\slolelelelefertiereiele etl eterelsyels We esemgs| secon'o00 585 |[Sogdac SGo00 Phegopteris alpestris, Mett.......+...+.+ Sepone|lmenesa||anacbc hem peconys| tsehoa|esauc2 Phegopteris calcarea, Hve......2ccseeeeeelecveee 1B Ga geanilotoned jataretetell aeeieiete'| eens Phegopteris Dryopteris, Fec......++.eeee|secees TPM ppe8sal andada| paca AllnoGe5o |[naaoa3 Phegopteris hexagonoptera, Fle... .+.+-|.-.+++|.-.-. fl al retasiereval lteter cterell eratareters 1 Phegopteris polypodioides, Fve,.-..-++++)+s0ee+ BLP) Al oarstatcisll ois: s/etn’el| lereteveyerall = ocets fon iovarerete Polypodium faleatum, Kellogg. «++... ++++ Boronia tecneHad HeASoo | met Rersocnl Bertsac 1 Polypodium Scouleri, Hook. and Girev..-.).-.++ ei aretererall etene ce ileal Heed (rs aso 1 Polypodium vulgare, D..+-+.++ eee ee eens G1 fe SR here i lteTereerseell one orstall giereratetell tere rate Ptenisaquilinaw Ease este cles seaee mrss) lve ae [lsreiats BA onodo eoecas)| Sodpda! sona56 Schizeea pusilla, Pursh...... «cece cecsee| seers |ecvens GWE srccs noscok lonoece 1 Scolopendrium vulgare, Smith.....+e+.-e)seeeee HG eccemustoilleieierare Alaa ui|lnsacac oes Woodsia clabella, i, Bi sins )lelas cles lerelesel|/« ciel s Ip Bases 5 laacense [beeen e tee eee cee eee Woodsia hyperborea, R. Br....... eseses|eceees Te NSoceoallas pds) bSadad foobata|joosas= Woodsia fl vensis; Hee bi a pemivateraeersteclctoll clsletetste Ths \lnoutse oiiteetetsiele [tree teleeeene eee Woodsia obtusa, Zone Saree eclsiaeisteese's esl aicistois ell elererests 1 Weagec Fiteee Reoeee ef. 22 28 Woodsia Oregana, D. C. Eaton... ss. eeeeleceeee LPs sierereiwell sispatere le Jpesods) aocadn if Woodsia'scopuling, D.C. Baton scr oe «.01s||n ele |} a1=)e aes |[ale'ste Gall al | Boda0| (odo Aliere it Woodwardia Virginica, Smith.......0++-|soecee|.- ee (a erates |. sqosolfassacr ree ad | ag {ae ao omen ees CANADIAN FILICINEA, 167 Table II divides the Dominion into five botanical areas, and shows what species, with their most distinct varieties, are found in each, viz: TJ. Atlantic Provinces and Hastern Quebec. II. Ontario and Western Quebec. III. The Great Plains northward to the Arctic Circle, including the greater part of Manitoba. IV. Rocky Mountains. VY. British Columbia. SPECIES. I, NUE ANU dG | BNe 1 Adiantum ped atm, Lsatciers wsisieeleis ele sielelereleleceletelsie EN Ss il Wicdeocollescate 1 2 Aspidium acrostichoides, Sw2.....ssecessescecsve sees 1 il lleesaby|torsdalleasone 3 Aspidium aculeatum, Swz..+..eee. eee eee cones unrateraterall{orete’s) efel| etaheraletel| eraierarers|lleisvaza| stall (eretetole : [ei Bei Wl censpdcoaddspoo Oddo obo0 o686 1 1 Weep lSpoaee 1 Var. scopulinum, D. C. Haton.......cesevesere voce] IF |\Gostise)|doocbel|coacce 4 Aspidium Boottii, Tuckerman... ececcee eevee amnoce conn 1 IL i orcos||Sose0s lobdand 5 Aspidium cristattm, Swz .-.0s.cececveee cecensss cose] 1 1 I hotsceollbosabe Var. Clintonianum, DCS Batotacc: ouececie sc esie+ ar peer il *| Bocq ualltetisoa|lecoade 6 U:Nejoylobyeueae) Shlib- rei afel|intefetetevaihiere sforerel| tieteteiere lieve ntal= | eels Phegopteris calcarea, Fee...+scsseseeessecececscece 1 A eeronlly Spock |basase Phegopteris Dryopteris, Flc.... cesses ceceeeeecee eres 1 1 1 1 1 Phegopteris hexagonoptera, Fee... sesceeecceesereerieeeeee| Lo | ceeeelecesee Pama Carried forward-.ereseseeescossecesese| 44 | 46 | 24 | 20 | 25 CANADIAN FILICINE®. 169 SPECIES. Pes) ele, WL vat | Ve Brought forward ve+ceevesevcveveen cers 44 46 24 20 25 51 Phegopteris polypodioides, Fve.+++ssssee verses ceeeee 1 il 1 iLIR etetat etete 52 Polypodium faleatum, Kellogg.++.secececcere cece sees |teeateleeneealensi ee east, yA! 53 Polypodium Scouleri, Hook, and Girevsssseeseveee cess |seneeeleceeeeleceerelecees of al - 54 Polypodium vulgare, L..........-. noabaduccanseodes ed Pyle al! 1 il 1 55 PGETIS), AQUI A. Eile ewelelevieisicl ae sigare ule! Ws/s|elsie/aisle'e sis 1 1 1 HOS) ferereterste Var. lanuginosa, Bong. ...se. cccucesecceencenecess|sersselscnsseleoceveleceee aii al 56 Schizzea pusilla, Pursh..sese ssseee ceceencrsces cocuce pe all Needous|lScacos Mioetsiejet|lafersverete 57 Scolopendrium vulgare, Sivith.....+ceeseeecerevecees 1 il Jeoq0o0 teneee ceeeee 58 Woodsia glabella, R. Br... c. vcccss cccneecs vecncese | 1 il 1 ib) Necaboc 59 Woodsia hyperborea, R. Brees .ccccecsccccsceceroee| 1 il lleooppy|eoouen 60 Wroodsial Livensis Rabie cnellecle nse) ~eieiclee slelcjelsieis6 fase Weel 1 by alicooooc 61 Woodsiavobtusa, Lorre. c 1 ieacden||coooed nocboo lee : 62 Woodsia Oregana, D. C. Haton....cecesevccescrevere|eeeace il 1 1 | 1 63 Woodsia scopulina, D. C. Haton ..sceececscverncceecelerrsrelerveselacens Si al 1 64 Woodwardia Virginica, Smith.....+.seceseceeeeevees 1 Te qjdcaedcy|osp0da|laoonec cD Opa er asrelvrentininsers's nirievole ainiois{eisieie) a wieinie(s 54 | 55 31 | 27 3l Throughout the paper the distributions and habitats, as well as the limits of size as- signed to the various species are, in most cases, given from personal observation, but are supplemented by facts bearing on these points recorded in standard authors, or communi- cated by reliable correspondents. The habitat of ferns is subject to considerable variation. Plants from any cause thrown out of their proper range, and finding themselves in their new abode destitute of their accustomed surroundings, make a desperate effort to accommodate themselves to their new environment, and often fully succeed. Thus the Common Polypody, which has its usual home on rocks, in parts of Ontario lacking such, flourishes freely on dry banks, and the Matricary Grape-Fern, commonly found in wet woods and in moss along streams, has been noted in Nova Scotia on high, dry and open grass lands. Variations in size depend to so great an extent on the character of the soil and the climatic conditions under which a plant grows, that it becomes a matter of difficulty, or well nigh impossibility, to ascribe any usual height to a species, e. g., Asplenium Filix- foemina, which, in low, rich woods reaches a height of two to three or four feet, in exposed mountainous places often does not exceed three to six inches. Information on this head, however, is not without importance to pteridologists, and an endeavour has been made to mention the better known extremes, but without the intention, in any degree, to lay these down as absolutely fixed limits. Sec. IV., 1884. 22. 170 MACOUN AND BURGESS ON Apart from the foregoing there are variations which cannot always be referred to as« certainable causes. Many forms are found differing from the normal type, yet clearly traceable as only forms of it, and, when these are capable of transmitting their peculiari- ties to subsequent generations, they are styled varieties. In all such cases, however, there is an innate tendency to revert to the original type, and the best systematists endeavour to restrict, as much as possible, the so-called varieties. Notwithstanding this, as it cannot be disputed that the study of forms tends greatly to enlarge our knowledge of the real na- ture of species, and, as this diversity of form often constitutes one of the great barriers to our feeling sure of a specimen being properly placed, while only recording the most de- fined and fully recognized forms as distinct varieties, a fair degree of prominence has been given to those minor deviations on which are based the more questionable ones. Though free use has been made of the best works, both American and European, in the preparation of the specific descriptions, these have, in all cases except those of Schiz@a pusilla and Phegopteris alpestris, been drawn from Canadian specimens, large numbers of which, from widely separated localities, haye been submitted to close examination, and carefully compared with American and often foreign plants. In this connection gratitude for valuable assistance—not alone in material supplied for examination, but also in infor- mation furnished—must be expressed to various friends, of whom Professor D. C. Eaton of New Haven, Conn.; Professor Lawson and Mr. Peter Jack of Halifax, and Mr. A. H. McKay of Pictou, Nova Scotia; Mr. James Fletcher of Ottawa, Mrs. Roy of Owen Sound, and Dr. Millman of London, Ont., have not been the least forward. The synonymy has been made full enough to include most of the more familiar names, which have at different times been so lavishly applied to many of the species, and pains have been taken to Introduce Canadian references, in order to facilitate future researches into the home history of any of the forms. Where any economic value, in either science or the arts, exists, or has existed, in a species, a note of such has been appended. In conclusion of this, perhaps already too lengthy, introduction, and before proceed- ing to the description of the individual species, a few words as to ferns in general and their mode of development may not be out of place. While in appearance and habit they pre- sent an infinite variety, from the sedge-like Schiz@a pusilla to the stately Osmunda regalis, in all, reproduction is carried on through germs (spores), which are almost infinitesimal, dust-like bodies, produced asexually. A spore, unlike an ordinary seed, is not a diminutive plant made up of radicle and plumule, but consists of a little, double-coated cell, differ- ing in shape and external appearance in the different genera of ferns. In germination, the outer layer (ezospore) is burst by the absorption of water, and the inner (endospore), which has taken on a process of development by enlargement and cell multiplication, is protruded in the shape of a minute, leaf-like, usually round or heart-shaped, flat patch (prothallium), composed entirely of cellular tissue and quite unlike the parent plant. Among the hair-like root fibres, which, springing from the under surface of the prothal- lium, attach it to the earth, are now produced a number of other cells, but of two dis- tinct kinds, corresponding to the stamens and pistils of flowering plants, and called antheridia and archegonia. The former are filled with small, ciliate, thread-like bodies (antherozoids), analagous to pollen, while the latter, which are bottle-shaped, contain an imperfect germ, consisting of a minute, central cell (oosphere). At a certain stage in the process of germination both the antheridia and archegonia burst by the absorption of — sted fe CANADIAN FILICINE®. 7a. water, and the antherozoids escaping, are, by the movement of their ciliz, brought in contact with the archegonia, through the neck of which they make their way to the oosphere and fertilize it, when, immediately beginning to grow, it gives origin to a very small and simple plant. This young plant at first derives its nourishment from the other cells of the prothallium, which, however, soon withers away, its nursling having esta- blished roots of its own. Steadily onward, now, goes the process of development, till at length the young plant begins to assume a likeness to the parent fern. But, having reached this stage, we are still very far from having a perfect plant, for the growth of the fronds is slow, much more so than that of the leaves of flowering plants, and in the great majority of ferns it is generally two or three years before the development is completed. When at length this is accomplished, and the frond is ready to produce fruit, there arise on it (in set places, according to the species of fern) clusters of little, projecting cells. Each of these cells becomes divided into two, one of which either shrivels up and forms a stalk connecting the remaining one with the frond, or entirely withers away; while the second is divided into five cells, four of which surround the fifth. Each of these four is again divided into two, forming an outer and an inner layer of cells. The outer layer next unites to form a case (sporangium), while the inner disappears, its place being taken by a fluid in which the fifth cell is left floating. This floating cell continues to grow for a time, when it breaks up into a mass of dust-like bodies,—the new spores. Finally, when the fruit is fully matured, the sporangium splitting, the spores are scattered, and, floating about, at last come to rest in some favourable spot, where they may again begin a fresh cycle of life, such as has just been described. The following Synopsis of Genera is taken from Professor Haton’s “Ferns of North America” without change, except as regards its limitation to Canadian species, and the transposition of the Orders Ophioglossacee and. Filices. SYNOPSIS OF GENERA. Conort FILicINnE2. Vascular Cryptogamia having leaves or fronds usually raised on a stalk, rising commonly from a creeping or assurgent or even erect rootstock, and bearing on the back or margins sporangia containing spores of but one kind, which in germination produce a minute cellular prothallus, on which are borne antheridia and archegonia, the latter after fertilization producing a new plantlet. Stems never hollow, nor covered with subulate leaves. Orper OPHIOGLOSSACEZE. Leafy plants; the leaves (fronds) simple or branched, often fern-like, erect in vernation, developed from underground buds formed from one to three years in advance, either within the base of the stalk of the old frond or by the side of it, bearing in special spikes or panicles subcoriaceous, exannulate, bivalvular sporangia, formed from the main tissue of the fruiting segments of the frond, Prothallus underground, destitute of chlorophyll, monecious, J. OPHIOGLOSSUM. Frond with a posterior simple or forked or palmated sterile segment, and one or more anterior or lateral simple spikes of fruetification ; the connate sporangia in a row along each side of the spike. Buds exterior to the base of the stalk. Veins reticulated. 2, BOTRYCHIUM. Frond with a posterior pinnatifid or compound sterile fern-like segment and an anterior, panicled, fertile segment, the separate sporangia in a double row on the branches of the panicle. Bud enclosed in the base of the stalk. Veins free. Orper FILICES. Leafy plants; the leaves or fronds circinate in yernation, rising from a rootstock and bearing reticulated sporangia which are homologous with leaf-hairs, being outgrowths from the epidermis. Prothallus above ground, green, moncecious, in some cases producing new plants from unfertilized archegq- 172 MACOUN AND BURGESS ON nia. The sporangia are usually collected in little masses called sori, which are oftenest found on the veins or at the tips of the veins, and are often covered either by a little scale (indusium) produced from the epider- mal cells, or by a general inyolucre formed from the recurved margin of the frond or its divisions. Suborder 1, Potyropracem. Sporangia globular, or slightly flattened laterally, collected in patches, lines or dots of various shapes, stalked, and provided with a vertical incomplete many-jointed ring which straightens at maturity and discharges the very minute spores, the sporangium opening by a transverse split across the side not occupied by the ring. Terrestjal ferns. Trize I. Polypodize. Sori round or ob!ong, placed on the veins or at the ends of the veins ; indusium none. Stalk articulated to a slightly prominent knob of the usually elongated creeping rootstock. Veins free or variously reticulated. 1. POLYPODIUM,. The only gonus of the tribe. Trize Il. Grammiitidese. Sori more or less elongated, without indusium, superficial, placed on the back of the frond or its divisions, and usually following the veins, or only near the tips of the latter and near the margin. Fronds sometimes scaly or tomentose, or covered beneath with coloured powder. 2. GYMNOGRAMME. Sori much elongated, following the veins, and like them often branched or reticulated. Trise IT]. Pteridesze. Sori close to the margin, sometimes extending partly down the veins, covered, at least when young, by an involucre opening inwards and either consisting of the margin or produced from it. 8. CHEILANTHES. Sori minute, at the ends of the unconnected yeins, covered by a usually interrupted involucre, Small ferns, often woolly, chaffy or pulverulent. 4. PELLASA. Sori near the ends of the veins, often confluent. Involucre membranaceous, continuous round the pinnules. Sterile and fertile fronds much alike and smooth ; the stalk dark-coloured. 5. CRYPTOGRAMME, Sori extending down the free veins. Invyolucre very broad, at length flattened out and exposing the now confluent sori. Sterile and fertile fronds unlike, smooth; the stalk light-coloured. 6. PTERIS. Sporongia borne on a continuous yein-like marginal receptacle, which connects the ends of the veins. Involucre continuous round the pinnules. Stalk light-coloured. 7. ADIANTUM. Sporangia borne at the ends of the veins, on the under side of the reflexed margin of the frond. Midvein of the pinnules mostly eccentric or dissipated into forking veinlets. Stalk dark-coloured. Trine IV. Bleehmesze. Sori more or less elongated, borne on a fruiting yeinlet or on a special receptacle parallel to the midrib, either near it or remote from it, and provided with a special usually concave or arched indusium attached to the receptacle outside the sorus and opening along the inner edge. 8 LOMARIA. Sori continuous from the base of the pinna to its apex, the receptacle nearer the margin than the midyein. Fronds in our species once pinnate, the fertile ones with contracted pinnee. 9. WOODWARDIA. Sori interrupted, forming a chain-like row each side of the midyein. Fronds in our species ample, compound ; the veins reticulated. Trize V. Asplemiese. Sori more or less elongated, borne on veins oblique to the midyein, covered by a special usually flattened indusium attached to the fertile veinlet by one edge and free on the other. 10. ASPLENIUM. Sori on the upper side of the fertile veinlets, less commonly on both sides of them. Veins free in our species, 11. SCOLOPENDRIUM. Sori linear, straight, confluent in pairs, borne facing each other on contiguous veins, the two indusia meeting by their free edges over the sporangia, and at length disclosing the latter between them. Fronds simple and veins free in our species. 12. CAMPTOSORUS. Veins reticulated, many of the sori continuous along two or three sides of the areoles, and therefore bent or angled; other sori opposite and facing each other in pairs, and some single on either the upper or lower sides of the veins. Fronds simple, the apex slender and elongated. Trize VI, Aspidize, Sori round or roundish, on the back, or sometimes at the tip, of the fertile veinlets, naked or provided with a special indusium, Stalk not articulated to the rootstock, the tropical genus Oleandra excepted. * Fertile and sterile fronds nearly alike ; receptacle not elevated. + Indusium none. 13. PHEGOPTERIS. Sori dot-like, minute. + + Indusium orbicular or reniform. 14. ASPIDIUM. Sori round, borne on the back or at the apex of the veinlets; indusium attached at the centre CANADIAN FILICINE. 173 or at the basal sinus, free around the margin, Pinnze not articulated to the rachis, Frond often decom- pound, t t t Indusium fixed across the fertile veinlet at the lower side of the sorus, ovate or roundish, very delicate. Small ferns, 15. CYSTOPTERIS. (Character of the subsection.) * * Sterile fronds foliaccous, the fertile frond with contracted and pod-like or be rry-like divisions. 16. ONOCLEA, Sporangia on an elevated receptacle, which is half surrounded at the base by an obscure collar- like indusium. Trize VII. Woodsize. Sori round, borne on the veins; indusium fixed beneath the sori, saucer-shaped and long-ciliate, or at first globose and at length breaking into several segments. 17. WOODSIA. Small ferns with free veins. Trine VIII. Dieksoniese. Sori roundish, marginal or submarginal. Indusium cup-shaped or two-valved its outer part composed of a reflexed lobe of the frond, or more or less united with it. 18. DICKSONIA. Indusium in our species small, nearly globular, membranaceous. Frond rather large, elong— ated, decompound. Suborder 2. ScuizmAcem. Sporangia variously placed, globose or acorn-shaped, opening longitudinally ; the ring an apical cap of cells radiating from a central point or minute circular space. 19. SCHIZA5A. Sporangia attached basally in two or four rows on the narrow divisions of little pinnate (rarely digitate) terminal appendages of the simple or dichotomous fronds. Cells of the ring radiating from a circular space. Suborder 3. Osmuxpacex%. Sporangia naked, globose, short-pedicelled, reticulated, opening into two valves by a longitudinal slit and having only a vestige of a transverse ring near the apex. Large ferns, the bases of the stalks dilated into stipuliform appendages. 20, OSMUNDA. Sporangia borne on the thread-like divisions of a separate frond or of a special part of a frond; the fruit-bearing portion normally destitute of green colouring matter. ORDER.—OPHIOGLOSSACEAR, Lindl. Genus I—OPHIOGLOSSUM, Z., AppER’s-TONGUE. 1—O. vutGeatum, L., (Common Adder’s-tongue), Michx., Fl. Bor.-Am., II, 275. Pursh, Il, 675. Swartz, Syn. Fil, 169. Gray, Man. 672. Eaton, Ferns of N. A., II, 261. Underwood, Our Nat. Ferns, etc., 70. Lawson, Can. Nat., I, 293. Macoun’s Cat., No. 2341. This plant, easily overlooked in the grass of low meadows where it is usually found, is one which once seen, with its long stalked spike rising from the single leaf-like barren segment, can never be mistaken for anything else. Occasionally it is found in woods, and sometimes on dry hillsides. In height it ranges from 6 to 12 inches, and though fleshy is non-evergreen. Root-stock slender, erect or rarely creeping, giving off fleshy horizontal roots ; sterile segment sessile near the middle of the plant, from 1 to 4 inches Tong, smooth, entire, oblong-ovate or elliptical in outline, obtuse, and narrowed at the base; fertile spike usually about an inch in length, apiculate, long-stalked, and much overtopping the sterile segment. O. vulgatum as a rule does not vary much, but occasionally the sterile seement is acute, is perfectly round, or is not exceeded by the fertile, while sometimes a rootstock bears a second frond, or, according to Prof. Eaton, one of the roots may produce an adventitious bud and originate a new plant at some little distance from the old one. Adder'’s-tongue was formerly extolled as the principal ingredient in an ointment 174 MACOUN AND BURGESS ON thought to exert a wonderful effect in the cure of serpent-bites, wounds, burns and scalds. It was also esteemed as an application to the inflamed udders of cows, and is still used in parts of England for this purpose. Though rare, the Adder’s-tongue in Canada has a wide range, extending from Nova Scotia westward to Manitoba. Found in Nova Scotia previous to 1863 by McCulloch, of Dalhousie College, but the exact locality of his specimens not known. Truemanville, Cumberland Co., N. 8.—A. J. Trueman. HopesHe and Cape Enrage, N. B—J. Brittain. Melbourne Tp., Richmond Co., Que.—Miss McIntosh. Hemmingford, Que.—Goode. Beech- wood, near Hemlock Lake, Ottawa, Ont.—J. Fletcher. Ferry Point, Belleville, Ont:; Beaver Meadow, between Hooper’s Lake and the Hastings Road, Tudor Tp., Hastings Co., Ont. ; grassy places along the Trent, McCann’s Island, Seymour Tp., Northumberland Co., Ont. ; St. Thomas, Elgin Co., Ont.—Macoun. Valley of the Humber, Toronto, Ont.—Burgess. Mouth of Rainy River, Lake of the Woods.—G. M. Dawson. Genus Il—BOTRYCHIUM, Swz., GRAPE-FERN. This genus has the following points common to all the species. Rootstock short, nearly erect, with clustered, fleshy roots, producing usually but a single frond each year. Base of the stalk swollen where it encloses the bud, and generally covered with a loose, outer sheath, the withered base of the stalk of the preceding year. All of them occa- sionally subject to the variation of having the sterile sections transformed into fertile, and vice versa, While sometimes, though much more rarely, there is a complete secondary fertile spike springing either from the main stalk or from the axils of the sterile divisions. § Base of stalk, which encloses the bud, closed on all sides. Sterile divi- sion more or less fleshy. * Sterile division usually placed at or above the middle of the plant. Fronds never hairy. } Sterile division once pinnate or pinnatified, the pinne never pinnately lobed. oe RE STE 1—B. Lunari, Swz., (Moonwort),, Hook., Fl. Bor.-Am., II, 265. Gray, Man., 671. Lawson, Can. Nat., I, 293. Macoun’s Cat., No. 2336. Watt, Can. Nat., IV, 364. Eaton, Ferns of N. A., I, 29. Underwood, Our Nat. Ferns, ete., 72. Osmunda Lunaria, IL. The Moonwort is a fleshy but non-evergreen plant, commonly about three to ten inches high, growing on dry, grassy uplands, rocky places or exposed cliffs, and sometimes in rich woods or boggy meadows. Sterile segment closely sessile near the middle of the plant, oblong in outline, obtuse, and simply pinnate; pinne crowded, commonly 5-15 in num- ber, semi-lunar from a broad, wedge-shaped base, the sides concave and the outer margin crenate, the terminal division usually two- or three-lobed; fertile segment bi-tripinnate, long stalked, as a rule overtopping, often considerably, the sterile. Bud smooth, with the apex of the sterile segment bent over and outside of the nearly straight fertile one. Variations in this fern are not uncommon, and cases of forking rootstocks, each of the branches giving rise to a frond, are reported. The sterile segment is occasionally more or CANADIAN FILICINE”. 175 less ovate in outline, and sometimes short-stalked, while the outer margin of the pinnze may be entire or incised, the latter condition when marked constituting var. inciswm, Milde. A Rocky Mountain specimen of Prof. Macoun’s very closely approaches the form with small, alternate, rounded and distant lobes, collected by Mrs. Rust in Onondaga County, New York, while others from the same locality resemble B. simplex in haying the sterile segment distinctly petioled. Two plants from Bow River Pass, Rocky Mountains, show the buds bursting for the new growth, which seems to be taking place before the old fronds are withered, and specimens from Cape Rosier, Gaspé, Que.,in other respects typical B. Lunaria, have the sterile segment scarcely overtopped by the fertile, and placed high up on the plant, much as in B. matricariefolium, the common stalk forming about three-fourths of the total height. Some monstrous forms from Flat Creek, Manitoba, also gathered by Macoun, are very stout and fully a foot high, with the fertile segment much branched, the primary lower branches almost as long ‘as the fertile segment itself, while the sterile segment is stalked and has its lobes, some of the lower of which are converted into branched fertile pinne, deeply incised. In ancient times B. Lunaria was credited with mysterious and magical powers for opening locks when put into key-holes, taking the shoes off horses stepping on it, and turning quicksilver into the genuine article, while even to the present day there are firm believers in its powers of healing wounds to which it is applied. In Canada the Moonwort occurs from Quebec to British Columbia, and northward to within the Arctic Circle. North side of Island of Orleans, Que.—J. F. Whiteaves. Riviere du Loup en-bas, Que——D. R. McCord. Exposed cliffs near Cape Rosier, Gaspé, Que. ; abundant on the north shore of Lake Superior at the Pic and Nipigon Bay, in meadows at Cape Alexander, twelve miles up the Nipigon River, and at various points on Lake Nip- igon, Ont.; very plentiful on the prairie close to the sand hills at Flat Creek, Manitoba; on mountain slopes, Bow River Pass, Rocky Mountains, N. W. Ter.; in a boggy meadow near Fort McLeod, B. C., Lat. 55°—Macoun. Carlton House, on the Saskatchewan, N. W. Ter.—Richardson. Echimamish River to Knee Lake, and Churchill River near Hudson Bay, N. W. Ter.—R. Bell. tt Sterile division, in fully developed fronds, mostly bipinnatifid. 2.—B. MATRICARLEFOLIUM, A. Br., (Matricary Grape-Fern), Watt, Can. Nat., IV, 364. Macoun’s Cat., No. 2339. Eaton, Ferns of N.A., I, 129. Underwood, Our Nat. Ferns, etc., 72. B. rutaceum, Sw2., Spee. Hey (7/- B. simplex, Hook. and Grey. B. neglectum, Wood. This is a moderately fleshy, non-evergreen plant, two to twelve inches high, growing commonly in dark, wet woods and along rivulets, but also found on rather dry and grassy, elevated plateaus. Sterile segment petioled, placed above the middle of (usually high up on) the plant, oblong-ovate in outline, and pinnate into 9-11 ovate, or ovate-oblong, obtuse lobes, which are nearly all of one size and toothed or incised; fertile segment bipinnate, and generally short stalked; bud smooth, with the apex of both segments turned down, the sterile segment clasping the fertile one by its side divisions, with its apex overlapping the whole. 176 MACOUN AND BURGESS ON The sterile segment is variable in shape, and the fertile in the degree of its division, but varieties based on these differences are, as stated by Prof. Eaton, probably only indica- tive of stages of development. The plant above described is the common one in America. The simplest form has the sterile segment very small, obovate-cuneate, and slightly 3-5 toothed along the sides, with the fertile a simple spike; while the most fully developed has the sterile segment broadly triangular in outline, the lower pinne pinnately divided into obtuse, toothed lobes, and the fertile much branched, its lower branches nearly as long as the central part. In any of the forms the sterile segment is occasionally almost or quite sessile. With us the western limit of this fern, so far as known, is Lake Superior, but in the United States it has been detected in Unalaska. Pictou, N.S—A. H. McKay. Dry and high grasslands, Cape Blomidon, N. 8S.—Macoun and Burgess. Truemanville, Cumberland Co., N. S.—A. J. Trueman. Petitcodiac and Titusville, N. B.—J. Brittain. Gravelly places on sea cliffs,erowing with B. Lunaria, Cape Rosier, Gaspé, Que.; woods near Belleville, Ont.; pine woods five miles north of Campbellford, Northumberland Co., Ont.; at the big pool below the railway bridge, Nipigon River, and on islands in Lake Nipigon, Ont.— Macoun. King’s Mountain, Chelsea, Que., and Casselman, Ont.—J. Fletcher. 3.—B. LANCEOLATUM, Angs., (Lanceolate Grape-Fern), Gray, Man., 671. Macoun’s Cat., No. 2338. Fowler’s N. B. Cat., No. 771. Goode, Can. Nat., IX, 300. Eaton, Ferns of N. A., I, 88. Underwood, Our Nat. Ferns, etc., 73. B. rutaceum, var. lanceolatum, Moore. Osmunda lanceolata, Gmelin. This species, which grows from 2 to 9 inches high, is non-eyergreen and scarcely fleshy, dwelling along the shaded, mossy banks of streams, and in rich woods and low pastures. Sterile segment closely sessile near the top of the plant, triangular in outline, and pinnate with oblique, lanceolate, acute pinne, which are again pinnatifid into similar but smaller segments ; fertile segment short stalked, slightly overtopping the sterile, bi- tripinnate, with slender branches; bud smooth with the fertile segment recurved its whole length, the shorter sterile segment reclined upon it. Like the Matricary Grape-Fern this plant shows a regular gradation of species from the form above described down to the smallest specimens, which have the pinne nearly entire and the fertile segment simple. Rarely the sterile segment is only sub-sessile, and occasionally it overtops the fertile. Young plants of this species are not easily distinguished from those of B. matricarie- folium, of which it is by some authorities made only a variety. The points to be most relied upon in the differentiation are, that B. lanceolatum fruits later (end of July or begin- ning of August), is usually smaller and more slender, has the sterile segment sessile and deltoid with lanceolate, acute or sub-acute divisions, and the fertile segment is very short stalked. In addition there are the differences in vernation. As yet recorded this plant is rare in Canada, and though found in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Quebec, is very local in all these provinces. In a field at Truemanville, Cumberland Co., N. 8S.—A. J. Trueman. Shady places in rich soil, Fredericton and Bass River, N. B—Fowler. Magog, Que.—Goode. * * Sterile division placed low down on the plant. CANADIAN FILICINE #. 17H 4.—B, stmPLEX, Hitch., (Hitchcock’s Moonwort), Hook., Fl. Bor.-Am., II, 265. Gray, Man., 671. Watt, Can. Nat., IV, 364. Macoun’s Cat., No. 2335. Ball, Trans. N. 8. Inst. Nat. Sci., IV, 155. Eaton, Ferns of N. A., I, 121. Underwood, Our Nat. Ferns, etc., 71. B. virginicum, var. (2) simplex, Gray, Man., ed. 2nd, p. 602. Lawson, Can. Nat., L., 292. This is a smooth, non-evergreen, fleshy, little plant, 1-7 inches high, growing in meadows, damp rich woods, and on hillsides. Sterile segment petioled, placed below the middle of the plant (usually near its base), ovate in outline, and incised into three to five lobes, which are roundish, obovate, or semi-lunar, with the outer margin entire or obscurely crenulate ; fertile segment long-stalked, usually much overtopping the sterile, and once or twice pinnate ; bud smooth, with the apex of both sterile and fertile segments erect. As in B. lanceolatum and B. matricariefolium, this species exhibits a regularly graded series of stages of development, and from var. simplicissimum, Lasch, the simplest form with the sterile segment very small and entire and the fertile simple, through var. incisum, Milde, the common form and the one above described, and var. sub-compositum, Lasch, more decidedly pinnatifid with the lowest pair of pinne remote, slightly incised and petioled, the varying stages can be traced to var. compositum, Lasch, (the common western form), which is the perfectly matured plant, and has the sterile segment ternate with stalked, pinnately incised divisions, and the fertile segment fully bipinnate. Rarely the sterile segment is placed above the middle of the plant forming var. fallax, Milde. The range of this species in Canada is from Nova Scotia to Lake Superior and the Northwest Territory, though in the United States it extends south-westward to California. Windsor, Hants Co., N. S—How. Truemanville, Cumberland Co., N.S., var. simplicisse- mum.—A,. J. Trueman. Petitcodiac and Fredericton, N. B—Bailey. Dalhousie, N. B., var. sub-compositum.—J. Fletcher. Temiscouata, Que., near the sea shore.—Thomas. Quebec, Que. —Brunet. Montreal, Que—D. R. McCord. Grenville, Argenteuil Co. Que.