CHROMOSOME NUMBERS IN CHEILANTHES AND POLYPODIUM

Six chromosome observations are reported, two being confirmations and four being new counts. Polypodium plesiosorum (from Mexico) shows 37 pairs at meiotic metaphase and thus conforms to past counts of diploid species in this genus. Cheilanthes wrightii (Arizona) has 2n = 58 and is a diploid member of the x = 29 series of that genus. Cheilanthes tomentosa (Alabama) shows 90 units at metaphase of meiosis and approximately the same number during mitosis in the crozier cells. It has 32 spores and our plant is an apogamous triploid. Both Cheilanthes siliquosa (Washington) and C. californica (California) show 30 pairs at meiotic metaphase. Counts on plants identified as C. carlotta-halliae (California) show 30 bivalents and 30 univalents at diakinesis, suggesting that they actually represent allopolyploid backcrosses of C. carlotta-halliae and one of its parents.