^ 2 0 AN:^TAI•S OF THE BOYAI BOTAKIC GABDEN, OAIIOÜTTA. muoronatus>
HABITAT.—The Malayan. Peninsula in the district of Perak on Gunong Tambang
Batak, Scortechini No. 316 in Herb. Becc.; and on the Thaiping Hills, Ridley
No. 5203 and 11413 in Herb. Becc.
OBSERVA'noNS.—A very variable species, distinguished in the group -with cirriferous
leaves by its very narrow elongate 3-costate leaflets, which are approximate in
groups of 2-6 on each sido of the rachis and are not pointing different ways but
are on one plane and have long vacant spaces interposed, recalling in shape and
disposition those of C. Oxleyanus.
The specimens from the Thaiping Hills, also in the State of Perak and collected
by Mr. H. N. Ridley (No. 5203) are more robust in every part than Scorteehini's
ones- the rachis is more strongly prickly, the leaflets as muela as 6 in each group
and the largest 10 cm. long, sparsely bristly-spinulous on the niid-costa above;
the female spadis very elongate; upper primary spathes almost cylindraeeous;
spikelets up to 13 cm. loug with 18 flowers on each side.
P l í t b 18-1.—Calamus viridispinus Beca. Portion of the sheathed stem with an
«ntire female spadix in flower and with an almost entire leaf (wanting the
cirriferous summit); detach8d partial inflorescences with ovaries in course of development;
detached spikelet with immature fruit; fruit; dorsal and raphal view of a
seed- another seed cut through the embryo,—From Scortechini's specimen No. 316
in Herb. Becc.
—The quite roatuie and somewhat bruised fruit and (he seeds represented in this plate
were enclosed in an eiiTelope with Ssortechioi's speetmen No. 316 and are supposed to belong to
these. This seed is very much like that of C. yamomsinms, but in this the embryo is basilar.
CALAHnS VIUIDISPINUS var. SUlIiTBANOS Becc.
DESCEIPTION.—Petiole armed ia its lower part at the margins with a few straight
horizontal, 1-2 cm. long, spinea; leaflets much less acuminate at the apex than iu
the type and sometimes almost obtuse, the tip more or less distinctly indented on its
lower margin and spin ulcus on both sides.
HABITAT.—Sumatra, where I have found this variety on Mount Singalang in
1878.
155. CALAMUS MUCBONATUS Becu. in Rec. Bot. Surv. Ind. ii. 213.
DESCBIPTIOS.—Scandent, very slender. Sheathed stem 4-6 mm. in diam. Leafsheaths
not fiagelliferous, obliquely truncate at the mouth, sprinkled at first with
greyish or feriugineous scales, ultimately glabrous, iinely longitudinally striate, slightly
puckered above, smooth or armed with very few short broad-based solitary straight
horizontal spines. Ocrca very short, liguliform, fugaciously ciliately setose. Leaves
small, the pinniferous part 15-30 cm. long; the cirrus very slender, filiform, 15-40
cm. in length, armed with very crowded half-whorls of very delicate and very acute
black-tipped claws, fugaciously ciliately setose; petiole very short, hardly 1 cm.
long, smooth; rachis armed beneath with slender, at first solitary, upwards ternate
claws, bifaced and smooth above; leaflets very few, from 3 to a on each side,
C» Tnuaronaius7\ BECCAEI, MONOGTOAPH OF THE GEÍIÜS CALAMUS. 421
very inequidistant and remote on© from the other, irregularly alternate or snbopposite,
never fascicled, thinly papyraceous, rigidulous, glabrous, opaque, green even when
dry, slightly paler beneath, oblanccoiate, gradually tapering lower down from above
•the middle towards an acute base, suddenly narrowed at the summit into a rather
long narrow acuminate muero or tip, this quite naked or with 1-2 subspiny bristles
at its summit, plicately ó-costulate, the costae very slender and smooth on both
surfaces; transverse vciulets very fine, rather numerous, much interrupted; margins
perfectly smooth; the largest leaflets, those a little above the base, 6-12 cm. long,
12-16 mm. broad; the two of the basal pair and sometimes the two next much
smaller than the others, strongly deflexed and distinctly callous at their insertion.
MaXe spadix slender erect, shorter than the leaves, inserted about midway of the
sheaths, not flagelliferous at its summit, simply decompound, with very few (5-6)
partial infloroscGDces; primary spathes 2-3 cm. long, tubular, slightly infundibuliform
or somewhat enlarged and rather loosely sheathing in their upper part, narrowed to
the base into a short unarmed axial part, fugaciously furfuiaceous, very obliquely
truncate and densely ciliate-bearded at the mouth, prolonged at one side into a
rather long lanceolate acuminate erect point, unarmed, longitudinally striately veined;
partial inflorescences inserted at the mouth of their own spathe, spreading and
arched, very small, the lower ones, the largest, 4-5 cm. long witli 6-8 spikelets on
each side, which however have a unilateral tendency; upper inflorescences gradually
smaller ; secondary spathes infundibuliform, striately veined, not scabrid, rather
densely covered with chaffy-furfuvaceous greyish small scales, a good deal narrowed
to the base, very obliquely truncate and ciliate at the moutli, prolonged at one side
into a rather acute tip; spikelets very short, circinnato-scorpioid, 5-10 mm. long,
with veiy closely packed flowers; spathels very approximate, bracteiform, concave,
broadly ovate, acute or acuminate, strongly deflexed and subtending their flower;
involucre transversely evolute, nlmost explánate and apparently formed by two triangular
divaricate acute bracts connate by their bases; spathels and involucres
membranous, reddish-brown, strongly striately veined and ciliate. MaU flowers small,
2 mm. long, ovoid-subtrigonous; the calyx subcampanulate, strongly striately veined,
parted midway down into 3 very broad acute lobes; the corolla about twice .as
long as the calyx, opaque outside. Female spadiz
HABITAT.—Borneo; in Sarawak, at Kuching, Beccari P. B. No. 829; on Mount
Mattang, Beceari P. B. No. 1904. It was also collected by Lobb in 1853, probably
.also in Sarawak (H. Kew.).
OBSEEVATIOSS.—I bavo two specimens with male of this very
a the
gaUUtZiXCki UitW O^f^KyiUXyjLX^ .
distinct small Calamus. The one No. 1904 has quite unarmed
other these bear a few small straight spines,
The nearest ally of this species is perhaps C. asperrimus, having tlie male
spikelets almost identical, but in this the male spadix is a good deal more elongate
and besides C. mucronatus is not scabrid in any of its parts.
I t resembles also C. melanoloma with which it agrees, as with C. asperrimut, in
the small leaves with a few lanceolate leaflets, and in the green colour they keep
in drying.