A new Lycopodium from Guatemala

VOL. XVIII, ^PP.

231-232 DECEMBER

9, 1905

PROCEEDINGS

OFTHE

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

A NEW LYCOPQDIUM FROM GUATEMALA.

BY WILLIAM

R.

MAXON.

Bypermission of the Secretary^oftheSmithsonianInstitution.

Among

^{a collection of}

^Guatemalan

plants received at

the U.

S.

National Museum

in

1902

there

was a

_single

specimen

^of'

Lycopodium ^which

^{at that}

^time we were unable

to refer satis factorily to

any

species

known from middle America. While manifestly

^{of close alliance to L.}

aqualupianum

^{of the}

West Indies

it

seemed

to offer

notable

differences,

but

in the

absence

ofadditional

material we

hesitatedtodescribeitas

new. During January

^of

¹⁹⁰⁵ we were

fortunate in_visitingthe preciselocality, in

Alta Verapaz, whence

this

specimen had been

received _;

and _although we were

able to collect

but a

_single additional

plant

^this

accords

so perfectly

with

the

former

in the characters distinguishing ^it

from

L.

aqualupianum^

^{its nearest} ally,

that we have no doubt

that

they

represent

a

distinct species:

Lycopodium

dichaeoides

sp.nov.

Plant pendent, 25cm._long,thetype specimen^fourtimesdichotomously branchedinthe_apicalhalfatregular^intervals: leaves bright green,sessile, divergent,ⁱⁿfour ranks, those of thelower

main

stem9 to10

mm.

_long

_by

4to 5

mm.

_wide,broadlysubspatulate, theupperones gradually smaller(6 to7

mm. _by

3to 3.5 mm.), exactly oblong-oval, imbricatein drying"; ^all obtuseorwith_{a very}slight apiculation,the

mid

veinconcealedthroughout^: strobilesvery short(8to18mm.),stout,simple^ormostly onceforked,con spicuously quadrangular; sporophylls ^1.5

mm.

_{long, rigid,} achene-like,

47 PROC.BIOL. Soc. WASH., VOL. XVIII,^1905. (231)

232 Maxon A New Lycopodium from ^Guatemala.

broadly triangular-ovate, acuminate,deeply cucullate, carinate, the stout beak exceeding ^the sporangium about 0.5

mm.;

sporangium ^orbicular- reniform,with a deep narrow^sinus.

Type ^intheU.S. National Herbarium, No.408,034, collected near the Finca Sepacuite",AltaVerapaz, Guatemala,

March

28, 1902,

by

^O.F.

Cook and

R.F. Griggs; collectors'

number

251.

The

second specimen ^referredto

was

collected

by

^Robert

Hay ^and

^the

writer,

on

thetrail between Sepacuite"

and

_Secanquim,at

an

altitude of about _1,000 meters, in AltaVerapaz, January 12, 1905, No. 3268 _(U. S.

NationalHerbarium, No.473,235),from a treetrunk inthe

humid

forest region.

Lycopodiumdichaeoides

may

^be distinguished fromL.aqualupianum

by

itsbroader

and more

obtuse_leaves,itsconcealed venation,

and

_especially

by

^its short stoutstrobiles

which

are _closelyaggregated in denseclusters

and

arefromone-fifth toone-twentiethas_\of\gasthoseof L.aqualupianum.

The

sporophylls too areshorter, stouter

and

_relatively

much

broader.