ste, undulatte, margine integerrim», apice rotun- I
datse, basi in petiolum teretem attenuate. Color
intense fusco-purpureus, siccitate fere nicer, in
frondibus junioribus rubescens.
Fructificatio : Semina minutissima, rubra, ovata,
angulata, in globulis parvis congesta, intra sub-
stantiam frondis nidulantibus.
coriaceous and carnose, waved, the margin entire,
the extremity rounded, the base lengthened
into a cylindrical footstalk. Colour deep brownish
purple, when dry almost black, reddish in
the younger fronds.
Fructification- : Seeds very minute, red, ovate, an-
gulate, collected into small globules, imbedded
within the substance of the frond.
Fig. 1. Portion of the Frond, to show the disposition of the seeds. Fig. 2, Globule of seeds, removed from the
frond. Fig. S. Seeds.—All magnified..
I t is remarkable that this species, so common upon our rocky shores, should have been either passed over by
writers, previous to the publication o f the Nereis Britannica of Mr. Stackhouse, or. have been considered a variety
of F. palmatus, from which it differs no less in the form and texture of its frond, than in its fructification. For
here the seeds are collected into compact globules, and situated in a pulpy, substance between the two coats of the
frond. I t is as constant in its form as any Fucus : if found cut into segments, it is the effect of injury, as are the
perforations which are frequently observed upon it; and these are said by the Scotch fishermen to be caused by
a species of crab which feeds upon it. I t sometimes grows to the length of two feet. Decandolle has arranged it
among,the Ulvce, to which it as justly belongs as to the Fuel.
This is likewise eaten in Scotland, and confounded with the true Dulse described on the preceding page: and
Mr. Neill, in his excellent memoir on the Fuel in the Edinburgh Encyclopasdia, tells us that being thick and succulent
when young it is frequently preferred, especially for roasting in the frying-pan.
Both this species and F. palmatus are arranged in the genus Delesseria by Lamouroux; but neither - of them
seems to accord well with the characters he has laid down.