C O N F E R V A fontinalis.
Brownish Spring Conferva.
CRYPT0G4MIA At gee.
Gen. Char. Seeds produced within the substance of
the capillary or jointed frond, or in closed tubercles
united with it.
Spec. Char. Dark brownish green. Filaments simple,
capillary, obtuse, even, divaricated. Joints four times
as broad as long.
Syn. Conferva fontinalis. Linn. Sp. PI. 1 6 3 3 . Huds.
5 9 2. With. v. 4. 12 8 . Hull. 3 3 0 . Light/. 9 1 5 * .
Winch Guide3 v. 2. 74.
C. minima, byssi facie. D ill. Muse. 14. t. 2. f . 3.
C. fontalis fusca omnium minima mollis. Dill, in
Raii Syn. 5 8 .
V e r y general in both running and stagnant waters, either
attached to rocks, stones, or posts, or, when at its full growth,
floating in irregular radiated flakes on the surface. Its colour
is a dark dull brownish green; but it often assumes a more
brown hue, and at the same time an earthy aspect, from calcareous
or ferruginous matter, originally dissolved by carbonic
acid gas in the water, which matter this plant, like Chora and
others, attaches to itself, apparently by imbibing the solvent.
It is a great agent in purifying corrupted water, as Dr. Priestley
first remarked.
The filaments are several lines in length, simple, spreading
in a concentric manner, even, obtuse at each end, composed
of regular very short joints, about four times as broad as they
are long, so that we can hardly conceive it to be the advanced
state of C. limosa, t. 2053, because the j.pints of this tribe are
commonly lengthened by age.