^ J Q AN'NALS OR THE ROYAL BOTA.TIC &ARDEN, CALCUTT.V- [C. SpinlfoHuS.
HAUITAT.—Sikkim Himalaya. Lieut.-Col. Praio, who kindly forwarded me the
specimens with spadices I have described above, sa^s of t h i s variety that it occurs
i n the plains below Sivoke (outer slopes of Himalaya) on damp ground, and that
i t is a long rambler over trees. Lepcha name " K i i o b e e " (Pram). To this variety
must be referred also a specimen presented to me by Sir Dietrich IJrandis, who
collected it in the distiict of Jalpaiguri in the Western Duars m Bengal and another
f r om the Daarbund Pass in Cachar (Keenau in Herb. Kew). All these specimens
have the newly-exposed leaf-.slieaths marbled or mottled.
OusERvAnoNS.—The type-specimens of 0. lali/olius seen by me have only female
a n d the variety only male spadices, but very likely no appreciable differences exist
between the spadices of the type and those of the variety. The variety marmoraiui
is based not only on the marbled appearance of the surface of the leaf-sheaths but
also on the two diSerent forms of spines with which they are covered and on its
smaller size.
PLATE 177. Calamus latifolius var. marmoratus Bece. Portion of the sheathed
s t em with base of a leaf and with an entii-e male spadix; an intermediate portion
of a leaf (under surface); leaf-sheath with base of a leaf from tiie upper part of a
young plant.—From Praia's Sivoke specimen in Herb. Becc.
148. CALAMUS SPINIFOLIUS Becc. in llec. Bot. SUIT, Ind. ii, 202.
DESCKIFHOS.—Slender, scandent. Sheathed aUm 1 2 - U mm. in diam. Leaf-sheaihs
gibbous above, obliquely truncate at the mouth, mottled with very small green and
wliite furfuraceous patches and armed with scattered subulate, slender, 5-10 mm.
long, brown-lipped spines which leave a very distinct impression above them.
Ocrea very short, forming a very narrow furfuraceous margin at the mouth of
t h e sheath. Leaoes of the upper and fertile part of the plant about 1 m. long
in the pinniferous part and terminating in a filiform cirrus, armed with halfwhorls
of slender claws; petiole rather elongate (8-12 cm. long) sub-biconvex,
covered with small straight prickles in its upper surface, also more or less armed
at the sides and beneath with scattered straight spines; rachia armed beneath at
first with solitary and then geminate and ternate claws in its upper part, bifaced
a n d spinulous or smooth on the salient angles above; leaflets not very smmerous (32
in one leaf) in pairs or in threes, very approximate by their bases on each
side of tho rachis with rather long vacant spaccs interi)osed between the groups,
t h e pah-s or the groups usually not opposite, elliptic-lanceolate or oblanceolate,
broadest about or above the middle and theoce tapering to an acuminate and
b r i s t l y point, gradually attenuate to and acute at tho base, all (cxcept a few
near the summit) of about the same size, 12-16 cm. long, 2-2'5 cm. broad,
rigidulous, papyraceous, green and concolorous on both surfaces, .3- or sub-5-coatulate,
t h e mid-costa, and often 1 - 2 of tho side costae, furnished with a few rigid straight
needle-like black-tipped, 3-8 mm. long spines; in the lower surface all the nerves faint
and naked; transvfirse reinlets sharp, approximate, sinuoas and i n t e r r u p t e d ; margins
r a t b e r closely and spreadingly spinulous; often the lower margin in the upper
surface bordered by a rather broad shining band. Male spadix slender; elongate,
C. spinifolius.'} BECCAEI- MONOGEAPH OP THE GENUS CALAMUS. 4 1 1
"erect, attached towards the summit of tho sheath, more or less covered in every
part with small adpressed rusty-furfuraceous scales, shorter than the leaves, in one
-specimen about 60 cm. long with 8 partial inflorescences and terminating with
a very short aculeolate tail-like appendix; primary spathcs tubular, slightly enlarged
above, closely sheathing, narrow^ plano-convex and unarmed at the base, somewhat
f l a t t e n e d and keeled externally in their upper part, wliei-e armed with a few
horizontal straight spinulos, obliquely truncate, entire and ciliate-paleaceous at the
mouth and prolonged at one side into a triangular acute point; the first somewhat
l a r g e r and longer than the others with ihe edges acute and armed with small
acicular dark spinules; partial mflorescences inserted about the mouth of their
respective spathe, spreading, strict, slender; the lower ones, the largest, about 15 cm.
long, with 4 - 5 spikelets on each side, the upper ones somewhat shorter; secondary
spathes tubular-infundibuliform, unarmed, prolonged at the summit into a triangular
acute erect point; spikelets small, brittle, erect (not spreading), attaoiied at the
mouth of their respective spathes; the lower ones, the largest, 2-2-5 cm. long, with
•14-15 Hatly bifarious flowers on each side ; spathels very approximate, concave,
subcymbif(n-m, rusty-furt'ui'aceous, ciliate, with a broad rather obtuse point, which
subtends and embraces the base of the flowers; involucre concave, subcupular, included
i n the spathes. Male ßowers oblong, obtuse, 3 mm. long ; the calyx cupular, shortly
and broadly 3-toothed ; the corolla 3 times as long as the calyx and even more,
i t s segments oblong, polished outside. Fmale spadix
HAUITAT.—Philippines ; in Arayat, Central Luzon, A. Lohcr No. 1373, xii, 1893,
male specimen in Herb. "Sew. The sterile specimen upon which the species was
founded was collected by Vidal at Igbaras in the province of Ilo-ilo, Island of
P a n a y (No. 3954 in Herb. Becc. and Kew).
OBSERVATIOKS.—Loher's specimen is of the upper part of an adult plant with
a flowering male spadix, but t i e species was first based only on specimens of
leaves of which I subjoin the description. I think, however, that little or no doubt
remains about the conspecificy of the leaves with the fertile specimen described
above on account of the peculiar spinules which arise from the main costae of the
leaflets, though these spines be more numerous or larger in the radical than in
t h e cuuline leaflets. The radical leaves terminate in 2 leaflets, as usual in the
species of the group to which C. spinifolius belongs (that of C. pabistris); while tho
upper leaves are cirriferous at their summit; the rachis is armed beneath along
t h e middle with a few scattered, slender, pale, almost straight spines, which become
s l i g h t l y hooked upwards ; leaflets few (19 in the two leaves examined by me),
inequidistant, approximate by twos on each side, 10-12 cm. long and 2'5-3-5 cm.
broad, all about the same size, the lower ones narrower than the others, the
two of the terminal pair shortly connate at tlie base, spoon-shaped or deeply
concave beneath, oblong, oblanceolate or subobovate, gradually narrowed towai-ds the
base, rather suddenly acuminate into a bristly-spinous apex, glabrous, green (when
d r y ) , subconcolorois on both surfaces, with 5 acute costae, all running from the
base to the extreme apex, each costa provided in the upper surface, especially near
t h e base, with 2-4 needle-like, straight rigid pale black-tipped spines, 4 - 8 mm. long;
i n the lower surface tho costae are less prominent and quite smooth;
AKN. EOY. BOT. ÖABD. CALCCTTA VOL. X I.