North Island: Not uncommon on the mountains from the East Cape and Taupo southwards. South Island: Var. viridis: Mountains of Nelson, Marlborough and Canterbury, from Mount Arthur to the Rakaia Valley. 2500–5000 ft. December–January.
Mr. Kirk has described the South Island plant as a distinct species under the name of S. viridis. It is somewhat larger in all its parts, but differs in no essential character, and is far better regarded as a variety only. Specimens of S. Bidwillii collected at the foot of Ruapehu by the Rev. F. H. Spencer almost match others gathered in the South Island by myself.
30. S. geminatus, T. Kirk, Students' Fl. 350.—A small spreading shrub 1–4 ft. high; perfectly glabrous in all its parts, but the young branchlets, leaves, and involucres glutinous; branches slender, angled, grooved. Leaves 1½–3 in. long, ½–1 in. broad, obovate-lanceolate or obovate-spathulate, acute or subacute, gradually narrowed to a sessile and decurrent base, serrate, subcoriaceous; veins thin, subflabellate. Corymbs terminal, lax, leafy at the base; peduncles slender, usually forked, with sparse linear bracts above. Heads few, ⅓–½ in. diam., discoid and homogamous; involucral bracts about 8, in 1 series, shorter than the florets, linear-oblong, obtuse, coriaceous, with broad membranous ciliolate margins. Receptacle flat, alveolate. Florets 12–15, all tubular and hermaphrodite; limb campanulate, deeply 5-lobed. Stamens esserted; anthers not tailed. Achenes linear-oblong or linear-obovoid, narrowed at both ends, grooved, glabrous. Pappus-hairs in 1 series, rigid, scabrid.—Traversia baccharoides, Hook. f. Handb. N.Z. Fl. 164; Ic. Plant. t. 1002.
South Island: Mountains of Nelson, Marlborough, and Canterbury; not uncommon from Mount Arthur to the Upper Waimakariri. 1500–4500 ft. January–February.
A very remarkable species, with a more rigid pappus than is usual in Senecio, and in other respects resembling the Juan Fernandez genera Balbisia and Robinsonia. Sir J. D. Hooker created the genus Traversia for its reception, but in the "Genera Plantarum" it was reduced to Senecio.
22. MICROSERIS, Don.
Annual or perennial glabrous herbs. Leaves chiefly radical, entire or toothed or pinnatifid. Scapes long, leafless, single-headed. Heads homogamous. Involucre oblong or cylindric; bracts in about 2 series, with a few short imbricate ones below. Receptacle flat, without scales. Florets all ligulate, yellow. Achenes narrow, attenuate at the base, cylindrical, ribbed. Pappus of few or several linear flat scales tapering into simple or plumose bristles.
A genus of 16 or 18 species, all western North American except one from Chili and another from Australia and New Zealand.
1. M. Forsteri, Hook. f. Fl. Nov. Zel. i. 151.—A perfectly glabrous perennial herb; roots thick and fleshy, almost tuberous,
