Art. XXVI.—On Four New Species of New Zealand Musci.

Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Volume 26, 1893, Page 274

Art. XXVI.—On Four New Species of New Zealand Musci. By T. W. Naylor Beckett, F.L.S. [Read before the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, 4th October, 1893.] Plates XXV.-XXVIII. Phascum austro-crispum, sp. nov. Autoicous. Densely gregarious, minute. Stem short, much divided. Leaves, when dry, curled and contorted, with the margins incurved, curved, from an oval base linear-lanceolate; lower leaves smaller; perichætial leaves much longer, slightly secund, 2—2 ¼ lines long. Nerve canaliculate, very stout, excurrent in a stout mucro, margins entire. Cells of lower part of leaf hyaline lax long-rectangular, above quadrate and densely chlorophyllose. Seta short, yellow, same length as the capsule. Capsule immersed, oval or roundish-oval (rarely two in one perichætium). Operculum conical, produced into a stout, short, blunt, inclined or straight beak. Calyptra dimidiate, smooth, base entire, reaching below the middle of the capsule. Cladautoicous, the male inflorescence

terminal on a special branch, bracts broadly oval at base, tapering gradually into a point, nerved, paraphyses few. Hab. On clay-banks. Loc. Dyer's Pass Road, Lyttelton Hills. Abundant in the Malvern district, Canterbury, on sod-banks, No. 407 (named by Dr. Müller), T. W. N. B. North-east Valley, Dunedin, W. Bell. Braunia novæ-seelandiæ, sp. nov. Monoicous. Plants wide creeping, irregularly branched; branches patulous and somewhat clavate at the apices. Leaves, when dry, closely appressed and imbricated, when wet patulous, olive-green above, brown below, the lower parts of the stem denuded, concave, broadly ovate, acute, tapering somewhat suddenly into a blunt point, nerveless; O.06in. to 0·065in. long, 0·02in. to 0·0325in. wide, margins loosely revolute with a row of incrassated marginal cells. Stolons on lower part of stem, divaricate, 3 to 4 lines long; leaves small from an ovate base, tapering gradually into a long flexuous point, interspersed with red-brown radicles. Cells very uniform over the whole leaf, small, oval, those at the base in the centre long, and of a bright orange colour. Female inflorescence terminal, perichætial leaves longer, ovate-lanceolate, waved, margins flat, nerveless, archegonia numerous (20 or more). Male inflorescence axillary, bud-like, globose antheridia short-stalked, very numerous, with few paraphyses. Hab. Growing on dry rocks, mixed with Hedwigia ciliata. Loc. Selwyn Gorge, Canterbury, September, 1892; No. 417; T. W. N. B. (named by Dr. K. Müller). Quite distinct from Braunia humboldtii, and very different from it in appearance. My specimens are not in fruit, but have well-developed archegonia and antheridia. Hypnum (Lembophyllum.) micro-vagum, sp., nov. Stem creeping, procumbent, vaguely and irregularly branched. Leaves not altered when dry, dull grey-green, very small, broadly ovate, very concave, apex rounded, minutely toothed, quite nerveless. Cells long, slightly sigmoid, round-ended, very distinct, roundish at margin and apex of leaf, papillose at back. Perichætial leaves much larger, quite entire, inner ones convolute, apices pointed and spreading. Seta smooth, brown, 8 lines long. Capsule inclined or horizontal, short, ovate. Endostome, processes carinate, perforated, with two or three long-jointed cilia between. Hab. Creeping on stones in dry forest. Loc. Fagus forest, Ben More, North Canterbury, alt. 4,000ft., No. 366 (named by Dr. Müller), T. W. N. B. Kene

puru, Pelorus Sound; J. Rutland. McKinnon's Pass, Otago (collected by—Triggs); T. G. Wright, No. 963. Greymouth (collected by W. J. Gulliver); T. G. Wright, No. 874. The perichætium and fruit are very large when contrasted with the very minute leaves. It is allied to, and in some respects resembles, Hypnum vagum, Hornsch., but it materially differs in the form of the cells, which in H. vagum are prosenchymatous. It is also separated by its round-ended leaves and entire absence of nerve. Daltonia straminea, sp. nov. Dioicous. Stems crowded, fastigiately branched, 1in. to 1 ½in. long, golden-yellow. Leaves imbricated, appressed but not altered when dry, linear-lanceolate, tapering gradually to a point, concave, puckered within the edge. Nerve canaliculate, golden-brown, thin but well defined, the apex of the leaf frequently twisted. Margin entire, revolute. Cells long-oval and uniform over the whole leaf, a row at the base of a golden colour, cells of margin very long, narrow-ended. The revolute portion of the margin consists of about one-third of this band of prosenchymatous cells. Perichætial leaves half the length of stem leaves, oval, shortly and inconspicuously nerved, not margined. Seta 1 ½ lines long, smooth. Capsule slightly inclined, lying close to the underside of the foliage, oval-oblong, the lower part verrucose. Teeth of peristome linear, with a strongly-marked divisural line, trabeculæ very prominent and extending beyond the edge of the teeth; endostome divided to the middle into lanceolate carinate processes, not papillose. When dry the inner peristome is erect, and forms a cone, with the teeth of the outer peristome incurved. Operculum with a long straight subulate beak. Calyptra conical, deeply fringed at base, apex darker. Male inflorescence gemmiform in the axils of the leaves all up the stem, abundant: bracts numerous, inner ones with their apices curved outwards and truncate. Antheridia short and broad, mouth wide, areolation very distinct, paraphyses O. Loc. Stewart Island, January, 1889; W. Bell. This very handsome moss is of a beautiful golden straw-colour, specimens growing in exposed places having a coppery sheen. It was found by Mr. William Bell on smooth-barked trees, in one gully only, Half-moon Bay, Stewart Island. He sent it to Mr. Mitten, who decided that it was a new species “distinct from D. nervosa.” The dioicous inflorescence clearly separates it from that species.

Phascum austro-crispum, sp. nov.

Braunia novæ-seelandiæ, sp. nov.

Hypnum (Lembophyllum) micro - vagum, sp. nov.

Daltonia straminea, sp. nov.

Explanation Of Plates Xxv.-Xxviii. Plate XXV. Phascum austro-crispum. Fig. 1, 2, Two leaves, X 32. " 3. Perichætial leaf, X 32. "4 Cells at base of leaf, X 270. " 5. Cells of leaf, X 270. Fig. 6. Capsule and seta, X 32. " 7. Calyptra, X 32. " 8. Special branch bearing male infl., X 32. Plate XXVI. Braunia novæ-seelandiæ. Fig. 1. Plant, nat. size. " 2. Leaf, X 32. " 3. Section of leaf, X 32. " 4. Leaf of stolon, X 32. " 5, 6. Perichætial, X 32. Fig. 7. Apex of leaf, X 270. " 8. Marginal cells, X 270. " 9. Cells at middle of leaf at base, X 270. " 10. Leaf-cells, X 270. Plate XXVII. Hypnum micro-vagum. Fig. 1. Leaf, X 32. " 2. Leaf, X 70. " 3. Apex of leaf, X 270. " 4. Base of leaf, X 270. " 5. Marginal cells, X 270. " 6. Leaf-cells, X 270. Fig. 7. Papillæ at back of leaf, X 270. " 8. Capsule, X 32. " 9. Endostome, X 270. " 10. Leaf, X 32, and cells, X 270, of Hypnum vagum. Plate XXVIII. Daltonia straminea. Fig. 1. Plant, nat. size. " 2. Leaf, X 32. " 3. Apex of leaf, X 32. " 4. Revolute margin and cells, X 270. " 5. Capsule, X 32. " 6. Calyptra, X 32. Fig. 7. Operculum, X 32. " 8. Peristome and endostome, X 70. " 9. Male inflorescence, X 32. " 10. Antheridia, X 70. " 11. Cells of capsule, X 270.