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Case Studies in Geospatial

Applications to
Groundwater Resources
 



Case Studies in Geospatial

Applications to
Groundwater Resources
Edited by
Pravat Kumar Shit
Department of Geography, Raja N. L. Khan Women’s College (Autonomous),
Midnapore, West Bengal, India

Gouri Sankar Bhunia

Department of Geography, Nalini Prabha Dev Roy College,
Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India

Partha Pratim Adhikary

ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management, Bhubaneswar,
Odisha, India
Elsevier
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Contents
Contributors xv

1. Principle of GIScience and geostatistics in groundwater

modeling 1
Gouri Sankar Bhunia and Pravat Kumar Shit

1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 GIS and groundwater 2
1.3 Remote sensing and groundwater 3
1.4 Geostatistics and groundwater 4
1.5 Geocomputational modeling and groundwater 5
1.6 Geospatial intelligence and groundwater modeling 6
1.7 WebGIS and groundwater resource 7
1.8 Conclusion and future direction 8
References 8

2. Indicator kriging and its usefulness in assessing spatial

suitability of groundwater for drinking 11
Partha Pratim Adhikary, Ch. Jyotiprava Dash, Biswaranjan Behera,
S. Mohanty and Pravat Kumar Shit

2.1 Introduction 11
2.2 Basic theory of indicator kriging 12
2.3 Criticisms of indicator kriging 13
2.4 Merits of indicator kriging 14
2.5 Practical corrections to use indicator kriging 15
2.6 Applications in water science 16
2.7 Conclusions 23
References 24

v
vi Contents

3. GI Science application for groundwater resources

management and decision support 27
Gouri Sankar Bhunia, Pravat Kumar Shit and Soumen Brahma

3.1 Introduction 27
3.2 Hydrosphere–geosphere–anthroposphere interlinked
dynamics 29
3.3 Spatial and machine learning model for groundwater
mapping 29
3.4 Big data analytics and groundwater mapping 30
3.5 Geospatial intelligence and information communication
technology 32
3.6 Expert knowledge and GIScience 33
3.7 Data imbalances and new professionalism 34
3.8 Conclusion 34
References 35

4. Role of groundwater potentiality and soil nutrient

status on agricultural productivity: A case study in
Paschim Medinipur District, West Bengal 39
Swatilekha Parihari, Nilanjana Das Chatterjee, Kousik Das
and Raj Kumar Bhattacharya

4.1 Introduction 39
4.2 Study area 40
4.3 Data source and methodology 42
4.4 Result and discussions 49
4.5 Conclusion 62
Conflict of interest 63
References 63
 Contents vii

5. Groundwater potential zones identification using

integrated remote sensing and GIS-AHP approach in
semiarid region of Maharashtra, India 67
Sumedh R. Warghat, Satish S. Kulkarni and Sandipan Das

5.1 Introduction 67
5.2 Study area 68
5.3 Methodology 69
5.4 Results & discussion 72
5.5 Conclusion 86
References 87

6. GIS-based groundwater recharge potentiality analysis

using frequency ratio and weights of evidence models 91
Suraj kumar Mallick, Biswajit Maity, Pritiranjan Das and Somnath Rudra

6.1 Introduction 91
6.2 Study area 92
6.3 Database and methodology 93
6.4 Results and discussion 99
6.5 Conclusion 104
Conflict of interest 105
References 105

7. Delineation of groundwater potential zones in the

hard rock terrain of an extended part of Chhotanagpur
plateau applying frequency ratio (FR) model 109
Arijit Ghosh and Biswajit Bera

7.1 Introduction 109

7.2 Methods and materials 110
7.3 Frequency ratio model 115
7.4 Result and discussion 116
7.5 Groundwater potential zone 123
viii Contents

7.6 Validation of FR model 123

7.7 Conclusion 127
References 127

8. Assessment of groundwater salinity risk in coastal belt

of Odisha using ordinary kriging and its management 133
Ch. Jyotiprava Dash, Partha Pratim Adhikary and Jotirmayee Lenka

8.1 Introduction 133

8.2 Material and method 135
8.3 Results and discussion 140
8.4 Conclusion 146
References 148

9. Integrated GIS-based MCDA approach for suitability

zoning of irrigation water quality in semiarid
Kansai river basin, Purulia district, West Bengal 151
Amit Bera, Puja Chowdhury and Ananya Chakraborty

9.1 Introduction 151

9.2 Study area 153
9.3 Methodology 154
9.4 AHP technique 154
9.5 Results and discussion 157
9.6 Study of major cations and anions in the area 158
9.7 Groundwater quality for irrigation based on the
physicochemical parameters 159
9.8 pH 160
9.9 Total dissolved solids (TDS) 160
9.10 Total hardness (TH) 160
9.11 Salinity hazard 160
9.12 Sodium absorption ratio (SAR) 161
9.13 Sodium percentage (Na %) 161
 Contents ix

9.14 Magnesium adsorption ratio (MAR) 163

9.15 Residual sodium carbonate (RSC) 164
9.16 Kelly’s ratio (KR) 164
9.17 Permeability index (PI) 164
9.18 Groundwater irrigation suitability zone 166
9.19 Conclusion 167
Acknowledgment 167
Competing interests 167
References 167
10. Field-based spatio-temporal monitoring of hydrograph
network stations to predict the long-term behavioral
pattern of groundwater regime and its implications
in India: A review 171
Anadi Gayen

10.1 Introduction 171

10.2 Methodology 174
10.3 Discussion 180
10.4 Conclusions 181
Acknowledgments 181
References 182
11. Groundwater resources in Nigeria: Case study
of distribution and quality at a medium-size urban
settlement-scale 183
Adebayo Oluwole Eludoyin and Adewole Abraham Fajiwe

11.1 Introduction 183

11.2 Research problem 185
11.3 Study area 186
11.4 Materials and methods 189
11.5 Results 189
11.6 Discussion 200
References 202
x Contents

12. Assessing groundwater potential zone of Ong river

basin using geospatial technology 207
Sanjoy Garai, Sk Mujibar Rahaman, Masjuda Khatun,
Pulakesh Das and Sharad Tiwari

12.1 Introduction 207

12.2 Study area 208
12.3 Materials and methods 209
12.4 Result and discussion 210
12.5 Conclusion 225
References 226

13. Innovative trend analysis of groundwater resources

under changing climate in Malda district, India 229
Tapash Mandal Kunal Chakraborty and Snehasish Saha

13.1 Introduction 229

13.2 Study area 231
13.3 Database and methodology 232
13.4 Results and discussion 234
13.5 Conclusion 245
Acknowledgments 245
Conflict of interest 245
References 245

14. Assessing vulnerability of groundwater resource in

urban and sub-urban areas of Siliguri, North Bengal
(India): A special reference to LULC alteration 249
Mantu Das, Baidurya Biswas and Snehasish Saha

14.1 Introduction 249

14.2 Brief description of the study area 250
14.3 Study materials and methodology 250
14.4 Results and discussion 263
 Contents xi

14.5 Ground truth validation of the groundwater vulnerability

map 267
14.6 Conclusion 269
Acknowledgement 270
Conflict of the interest 270
References 270

15. Groundwater fluctuation and agricultural insecurity:

A geospatial analysis of West Bengal in India 275
Santu Guchhait, Gour Dolui, Subhrangsu Das and Nirmalya Das

15.1 Introduction 275

15.2 Study Area 276
15.3 Data and methods 277
15.4 Results and discussion 278
15.5 Conclusion 283
References 286

16. Assessment of groundwater quality for irrigation

purposes: A case study of Hooghly District,
West Bengal, India 289
Sadik Mahammad, Md. Mofizul Hoque, Aznarul Islam
and Arijit Majumder

16.1 Introduction 289

16.2 Study area 290
16.3 Datasets and methodology 292
16.4 Results and discussion 296
16.5 Conclusion 309
References 310
xii Contents

17. Geo-spatial assessment of groundwater drought risk

due to drought propagation in the Upper
Dwarakeshwar River Basin (UDRB), West Bengal 315
Ujjal Senapati, Debasish Talukdar, Dipankar Saha and Tapan Kumar Das

17.1 Introduction 315

17.2 Study area 318
17.3 Methodology 318
17.4 Physical GWD risk 321
17.5 Meteorological drought risk (Mr) 321
17.6 Parameters used in meteorological drought risk
assessment 323
17.7 Hydro-geological exposure (He) 324
17.8 Socio-economic GWD vulnerability 327
17.9 Result 329
17.10 Integrated GWDR map 332
17.11 Discussion 334
17.12 Validation 334
17.13 Conclusion 336
Acknowledgement 337
Conflict of interest 337
Reference 338

18. Assessment of groundwater level fluctuations in and

around Ranchi district, Jharkhand using geospatial
datasets and methods 341
Pranav Pratik and Priyank Pravin Patel

18.1 Introduction 341

18.2 The study area 342
18.3 Objectives 343
18.4 Datasets and methods 343
18.5 Results and findings 345
 Contents xiii

18.6 Conclusion 368

References 369

19. Groundwater conservation and management:

Recent trends and future prospects 371
Gouri Sankar Bhunia, Pravat Kumar Shit and Soumen Brahma

19.1 Introduction 371

19.2 Water, land, energy, and agriculture 372
19.3 Groundwater prospects and geographical settings 372
19.4 Advancement in groundwater data 373
19.5 Opportunities of sensor 374
19.6 Advancement of space technology 375
19.7 Water treatment technology 375
19.8 Integrating monitoring network 376
19.9 Strengthening scientific support 377
19.10 Encouraged public engagement 378
19.11 Future planned and conservation strategy 378
19.12 Conclusion 380
References 382

20. Seasonal fluctuation of groundwater table and its

impact on rural livelihood: A village level study at
coastal belt of Purba Medinipur District, India 385
Subrata Jana and Sriparna Jana

20.1 Introduction 385

20.2 Data base and methodology 387
20.3 Results and discussion 391
20.4 Conclusion 406
Acknowledgement 407
References 407

Index 411
 



Contributors

Partha Pratim Adhikary

ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Biswaranjan Behera
ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Biswajit Bera
Department of Geography, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia, India
Amit Bera
Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology,
Howrah, West Bengal, India
Raj Kumar Bhattacharya
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India
Gouri Sankar Bhunia
Department of Geography, Nalini Prabha Dev Roy College, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India
Baidurya Biswas
Department of Geography and Applied Geography, University of North Bengal, Raja
Rammohunpur, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India
Soumen Brahma
Department of Geography, Nalini Prabha Dev Roy College, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India
Ananya Chakraborty
Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology,
Howrah, West Bengal, India
Kunal Chakraborty
Department of Geography and Applied Geography, University of North Bengal, Darjeeling,
India
Puja Chowdhury
Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology,
Howrah, West Bengal, India
Kousik Das
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India

xv
xvi Contributors

Mantu Das
Department of Geography and Applied Geography, University of North Bengal, Raja
Rammohunpur, Darjeeling, West Bengal, India
Sandipan Das
Symbiosis Institute of Geoinformatics (SIG), Symbiosis International (Deemed University),
Pune, India
Pritiranjan Das
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India

Pulakesh Das
World Resources Institute India, New Delhi, India

Subhrangsu Das
Department of Geography, Utkal University, Odisha, India
Nirmalya Das
Department of Geography, Panskura Banamali College (Autonomous), Panskura, West Bengal,
India
Tapan Kumar Das
Department of Geography, Cooch Behar College, Cooch Behar, West Bengal, India
Nilanjana Das Chatterjee
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India
Ch. Jyotiprava Dash
ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Research Centre, Koraput, Odisha, India
Gour Dolui
Department of Geography, Panskura Banamali College (Autonomous), Panskura, West Bengal,
India
Adebayo Oluwole Eludoyin
Department of Geography, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Adewole Abraham Fajiwe
Department of Geography, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Sanjoy Garai
Institute of Forest Productivity, Lalgutwa, Ranchi, India
Anadi Gayen
Central Ground Water Board, Eastern Region, Kolkata, Department of Water Resources,
River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti,
Government of India, India
 Contributors xvii

Arijit Ghosh
Department of Geography, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia, India

Santu Guchhait
Department of Geography, Panskura Banamali College (Autonomous), Panskura, West Bengal,
India

Md. Mofizul Hoque

Department of Geography, Aliah University, Kolkata, India

Aznarul Islam
Department of Geography, Aliah University, Kolkata, India

Subrata Jana
Department of Geography, Belda College, Belda, Paschim Medinipur, India

Sriparna Jana
Department of Geography, Bajkul Milani Mahavidyalaya, Bajkul, Purba Medinipur, India

Masjuda Khatun
Institute of Forest Productivity, Lalgutwa, Ranchi, India

Satish S. Kulkarni
Department of Geology, Bharatiya Mahavidyalaya, Amravati, India

Jotirmayee Lenka
ICAR-Indian Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Research Centre, Koraput, Odisha, India

Sadik Mahammad
Department of Geography, Aliah University, Kolkata, India

Biswajit Maity
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India

Arijit Majumder
Department of Geography, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India

Suraj kumar Mallick

Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India

Tapash Mandal
Department of Geography and Applied Geography, University of North Bengal, Darjeeling,
India

S. Mohanty
ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
xviii Contributors

Swatilekha Parihari
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India
Priyank Pravin Patel
Department of Geography, Presidency University, Kolkata
Pranav Pratik
Department of Geography, Presidency University, Kolkata
Sk Mujibar Rahaman
Institute of Forest Productivity, Lalgutwa, Ranchi, India
Somnath Rudra
Department of Geography, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore, West Bengal, India
Snehasish Saha
Department of Geography and Applied Geography, University of North Bengal, Darjeeling,
India
Dipankar Saha
Department of Geography, Coochbehar Panchanan Barma University, Cooch Behar,
West Bengal, India
Ujjal Senapati
Department of Geography, Coochbehar Panchanan Barma University, Cooch Behar,
West Bengal, India
Pravat Kumar Shit
Department of Geography, Raja N. L. Khan Women’s College (Autonomous), Midnapore,
West Bengal, India
Debasish Talukdar
Department of Geography, Coochbehar Panchanan Barma University, Cooch Behar,
West Bengal, India
Sharad Tiwari
Institute of Forest Productivity, Lalgutwa, Ranchi, India
Sumedh R. Warghat
Department of Geology, Bharatiya Mahavidyalaya, Amravati, India
 

1 


Principle of GIScience and

geostatistics in groundwater
modeling
Gouri Sankar Bhunia a and Pravat Kumar Shit b
a DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY, NALINI PRABHA DEV ROY COLLEGE, BILASPUR,
CHHATTISGARH, INDIA b DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY, RAJA N. L. KHAN WOMEN’S
COLLEGE (AUTONOMOUS), MIDNAPORE, WEST BENGAL, INDIA

1.1 Introduction
The origins of GIScience can be traced back to two keynote speeches by Michael F. Goodchild
of the University of California, Santa Barbara at a conference in Europe. “Progress of the GIS
Research Agenda” at the 2nd European GIS Conference held in Brussels, Belgium in July 1990
and April 1991. GIScience is an existing technology and research field of geographic informa-
tion system (GIS), mapping (mapping), geodesy (measurement of the earth itself ), surveying
(measurement of natural and man-made features on the earth), orphotographs (measurements
using photographs), global positioning systems or GPS (accurate and accurate positioning of the
ground surface using satellites), digital image processing (processing and analysis of image data),
remote sensing (RS) (observation of the Earth from space or underwater), quantitative spatial
analysis and modeling (Rouhani and Hall, 1989). Therefore, GIScience covers issues such as
spatial data structure, analysis, accuracy, meaning, cognition, and visualization, some traditional
dealings with the physical processes of the earth, and the interaction between humans and
the earth. Overlapping areas of the discipline (e.g., geography, geology, and geophysics, marine
science, ecology, environmental sciences, applied mathematics, spatial statistics, physics), and
mutual between humans and computer technology. Fields dealing with action (e.g., computer
science, information science, cognitive science, cognitive psychology, artificial intelligence).
It is important to distinguish between GIS and GIScience. While GIS is primarily concerned
with hardware and software for capturing, manipulating, and displaying geographic data and
information (e.g., GIS as a container for data, maps, and software tools), GIScience is essentially
“The science behind GIS” or “the science behind the system.” In addition, starting with the
basic questions that occur using GIS (such as tracking errors through the system), a systematic
survey of geographic information from scientific methods (scale, accuracy, and quantitative
analysis of geospatial data). Science performed using GIS (e.g., developing spatial models to
predict susceptibility to local landslides, or developing agent-based models) simulating vehicle
Case Studies in Geospatial Applications to Groundwater Resources. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-99963-2.00012-2
Copyright 
c 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
1
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 The sporangia are in all cases capsule-like, and burst open when
ripe to eject the spores. They are nearly always situated on the
leaves (in Lycopodiaceæ, in the axils of the leaves, or above these,
on the stems themselves). In some forms (Leptosporangiatæ), the
sporangia are developed from a single epidermal cell; in others
(Eusporangiatæ), from a group of epidermal cells, or from cells
which lie beneath the epidermis. In the first group a primitive mother-
cell (archesporium) is formed, which divides commonly into sixteen
special mother-cells. In the latter group, on the other hand, a number
of primitive spore-mother-cells are developed. In each sporangium
three different tissues are generally developed; an innermost
sporogenous one (s in Fig. 204 A), which arises from the
archesporangium; an outermost one, which forms the wall (a), and
may be one or, more rarely, several layers in thickness; and an
intermediate one, the tapetum (Fig. 204 A, B, b t), which is rich in
protoplasm, and whose cells are dissolved so that the spores float
freely in the fluid thus provided. The spores arise as in the Mosses
(in tetrads), by the cross-division of the special mother-cells, and
according to the manner in which they are arranged in the mother-
cell have either a tetrahedral form, with a large base resembling a
segment of a ball, or are oblong (bilateral spores). Their construction
is the same as in the Mosses (p. 187).
 Fig. 204.—Selaginella inæqualifolia. A A young sporangium, which may
develope either into a macro-, or a microsporangium. B A microsporangium.
The spore-formation in its earliest commencement takes place in
the same way in the Isosporous and the Heterosporous Vascular
Cryptogams; but from a certain point, after the tetrahedral division, a
difference occurs with regard to the macrosporangia. All the spores
formed in the microsporangium may complete their development; but
those which are formed in the macrosporangium are generally
aborted, with the exception of one or four, and these consequently
attain a much larger size (see Fig. 239.—The series to the left are
microsporangia; those to the right, macrosporangia).
Apogamy. In some Ferns (Pteris cretica; Aspidium filix mas, var. cristatum; A.
falcatum; Todea africana) the young plant is not developed as a consequence of
fertilisation, but as a bud from the prothallium. This is known as apogamy, or loss
of the power of sexual reproduction. The antheridia are generally more or less
developed; archegonia are entirely wanting in Asp. filix mas, var. cristatum. This
variety has probably only become apogamous through cultivation. Many
specimens of Isoëtes lacustris, in a lake in the Vosges mountains, produce in the
place where the sporangia are usually found, a vegetative shoot which grows into
a new plant, so that the sexual generation is wanting in this case. Some
specimens have sporangia on some leaves, and shoots on others.
Apospory, or the formation of prothallia instead of sporangia and spores on the
leaves, is found in Athyrium filix femina, var. clarissimum. In this case the
development of the sporangia proceeds only to a certain point, and from these
arrested sporangia the prothallia are produced. Normal sporangia are entirely
wanting in this variety, and in Aspidium angulare, var. pulcherrimum, sporangia are
completely wanting. Compare the Mosses (page 188).

The Vascular Cryptogams are divided into three large classes, in

each of which a progressive development can be traced from the
isosporous to the heterosporous forms, but some of these are now
only known as fossils.
Class 1. Filicinæ (Ferns).—The stem is small in comparison with
the leaves, and branches only seldom, and then by lateral shoots.
The leaves are scattered, large, often deeply divided, and of various
highly developed forms. The undeveloped leaves are rolled up in the
bud, having what is termed circinate venation. The sporangia are
situated on the edge or on the lower side of the leaves, those on
which the sporangia are borne (sporophylls) being often the ordinary
foliage-leaves; but in a few cases the fertile differ from the barren
ones (a higher stage in development). The fertile leaves are not
confined to definite parts of the shoot, and do not limit its growth.
The archesporium is most frequently unicellular.
A. Isosporous: Sub-Class 1. Filices (True Ferns).
B. Heterosporous: Sub-Class 2. Hydropterideæ (Water Ferns).
Class 2. Equisetinæ (Horsetails), in its widest meaning.—The
leaves in this class are small in comparison with the stem. They are
arranged in whorls, and unite to form a sheath. The sporangia are
situated on specially modified, shield-like leaves, which are closely
packed together and form a “cone.” The cone is borne terminally,
and limits the growth of the shoot. The sporangia are developed from
a large group of epidermal cells, the archesporium being unicellular.
The branches are arranged in whorls, and develope acropetally.
A. Isosporous: Sub-Class 1. Equisetaceæ. Existing forms.
B. Heterosporous: Sub-Class 2. Extinct forms.
Class 3. Lycopodinæ (Club-Mosses).—Roots generally
branching dichotomously. The leaves are scattered or opposite, and
in proportion to the stem very small, undivided, and simple. They are
scale-like and triangular, tapering from a broad base to a point. The
sporangia are situated singly (except in Psilotaceæ), and almost in
every case on the upper side of the leaf or in the axil of a leaf; but in
some cases they are borne on the stem, just above the leaf-axil. The
sporangia arise from groups of epidermal cells. The sporophylls are
often modified, and differ from the foliage-leaves; they are then
arranged in cones placed terminally on branches, thus limiting their
growth.
A. Isosporous: Sub-Class 1. Lycopodieæ.
B. Heterosporous: Sub-Class 2. Selaginelleæ.

Class 1. Filicinæ (Ferns).

The characteristics of this class have already been given on page
204.
The class is divided into two sub-classes:—
1. The True Ferns, Filices, have one kind of spore which
generally developes monœcious prothallia, relatively large and
green. The sporangia are most frequently situated in groups (sori),
which are often covered but not enclosed by an indusium.
2. Water Ferns, Hydropteridæ, have microsporangia with
many (4 × 16) microspores, and macrosporangia, each with one
macrospore. The prothallium is small, and projects but slightly from
the germinating spore. The sporangia are situated in groups (sori),
which are either enclosed by an indusium, or enveloped in a portion
of a leaf, to form “fruits” termed sporocarps.
 The old name for the Hydropterideæ, “Rhizocarpeæ,” i.e. the “root-fruited,”
originated from the erroneous supposition that the sporocarps were borne on the
roots.

Sub-Class 1. Filices (the True Ferns).

Of the eight orders (with about 4,000 species) comprised in this
sub-class, the Polypodiaceæ is the largest (having about 2,800
species) and the most familiar; for this reason it will be taken as
typical.
The sexual generation. When the spore germinates, the external
covering (exospore) is ruptured, as in the Mosses. The internal cell-
wall (endospore) grows out as a filament, which soon divides and
gives rise to the prothallium, a flat, cellular expansion resembling the
thallus of a Liverwort. In its fully developed state the prothallium is
generally heart-shaped, dark green, and provided with root-hairs,
and it attains a diameter of about one centimetre (Fig. 205). It is
formed of one layer of cells, except along the central line near the
anterior depression, where it becomes several layers of cells in
thickness, forming the “cushion,” on the lower side of which the
archegonia are developed. The antheridia are first formed; they are
thus found on the oldest parts of the prothallium, on its edge, or
among the root-hairs. The archegonia are developed later, and are
therefore found near the apex. Several tropical Ferns have
prothallia[18] deviating from this typical form; Trichomanes (Order
Hymenophyllaceæ) has filamentous, branched prothallia, which
resemble the protonema of a Moss. Others, again, have strap-
shaped prothallia, which resemble the thallus of certain Liverworts.
 Fig. 205.—Prothallium (p p) of Maiden hair
(Adiantum capillus veneris) with a young plant
attached: b first leaf; w′ primary root; w″
adventitious roots; h h root-hairs of the
prothallium (× abt. 30).
 Fig. 206.—Antheridia of Maiden-hair (× 550). A Unripe; B ripe, but unopened; C
open and ejecting the spermatozoids (s). Those which have been last ejected are
still lying enclosed in their mother-cells, the others are coiled up and drag with
them the cytoplasmic remains (b); f cells of the prothallium.
The archegonia have been already mentioned (p. 199, Fig. 201).
The antheridia are hemispherical or slightly conical bodies (Fig.
206). They consist, as in the Mosses, of a wall formed by one layer
of cells, which encloses a number of spermatozoid-mother-cells (A
and B). The antheridia when ripe absorb water, and are ruptured,
and the spirally-coiled spermatozoids liberated (Fig. 206 S). The
spermatozoids have been observed to pass down the neck of the
archegonium, and to fuse with the oosphere.
The asexual generation. The first leaf, the “cotyledon,” of the
embryo developed from the oospore (Figs. 202, 205) is always
small, and has a very simple shape. The leaves which occur later
become more perfect, stage by stage, until the permanent form of
leaf has been attained.—The stem is most frequently a
subterranean or a semi-aerial rhizome; it is only in the tropical, palm-
like Tree-Ferns, that the stem raises itself high in the air and
resembles that of a tree, with leaf-scars or with the remains of leaves
attached (Figs. 207, 203); in certain species the stem is encased in a
thick mat of aerial roots (Dicksonia antarctica). When the rhizome is
horizontal the internodes are frequently elongated, and the leaves
are arranged in two rows, as in Polypodium vulgare and in the
Bracken-Fern (Pteridium aquilinum), etc.; it is also generally
dorsiventral, having a dorsal side on which the leaves are situated,
and a ventral side, different from the former, on which the roots are
borne. When the stem ascends in an oblique direction, or is nearly
vertical, its internodes are extremely short, and the leaves are
arranged in a spiral line with a complicated phyllotaxis, e.g. in
Athyrium filix-fœmina, Aspidium filix-mas, etc. The branching upon
the whole is extremely slight, and is generally confined to the petiole
(e.g. Aspid. filix-mas), or to the stem near the insertion of the leaves.
Several species normally form buds on different parts of the lamina.
The buds which are formed on the stem are not confined to the leaf-
axil as in the higher plants. The Tree-Ferns, generally, do not branch
at all.
The vascular bundles are concentric, with the wood surrounded
by the soft bast. In transverse section they are seen as circles or
irregularly-shaped figures (Fig. 203), the name of “King Charles and
the Oak” (Bracken-Fern) having originated from the appearance
which the bundles present in oblique section. In Osmunda they are
collateral and resemble those of the Flowering-plants. Round each
individual bundle is often a sheath of thick-walled, hard, brown,
sclerenchymatous cells, which act as a mechanical tissue; similar
strands are also found in other parts of the stem.
Fig. 207.—Various Ferns (1, 2, 3, 4).
 The leaves in nearly all species are only foliage-leaves, borne in
a spiral. They have an apical growth which continues for a long time,
and some require several years for their complete development. In
the buds they are rolled up (circinate); not only the midrib, but also
all the lateral veins, and even the terminal portions of a leaf are
sometimes rolled up together, the tissues of the leaf being already
fully developed and only waiting to expand. The leaves are often
excessively divided and compound, with pinnate branches, and have
an epidermis with stomata and a well-developed system of venation.
Stipules are only found in Marattiaceæ and Ophioglossaceæ.
Very often peculiar hairs or scales (paleæ, ramenta), dry, brown,
flat and broad, are found on stem and leaf.
The sporangia are small, round capsules, which, in a very large
number of Ferns, are formed on the back, but more rarely on the
edge of the ordinary foliage-leaves. It is very seldom that there is any
difference in form between the barren foliage-leaves and the fertile
leaves, as is found for example in Blechnum spicant or
Struthiopteris; or that the fertile part of the leaf is differently
constructed from the barren portion of the same leaf, as in the Royal-
Fern (Osmunda). In such instances the mesophyll of the fertile parts
is poorly developed.
The sporangia in the Polypodiaceæ are lens-shaped, with long
stalk (Fig. 211 D): their wall consists of one cell-layer on which a
single row of cells, passing vertically over the top (that is along the
edge of the sporangium), is developed into the “ring” (annulus). The
cells of the annulus are very much thickened on the inner and side
walls, and are yellowish-brown. The thickened cells, however, do not
entirely encircle the sporangium, and on one side, near the stalk,
they pass over into large, flat, thin-walled cells. These form a weak
point in the wall, and it is here that the sporangium is opened
diagonally by the elongation of the annulus. The sporangium of the
Polypodiaceæ opens as it dries. The cells of the annulus are very
hygroscopic, and in straightening, the annulus bends back with a
jerk, thus ejecting the spores to considerable distances. The cells of
the annulus absorb water with great readiness. [The sporangium
arises as a single epidermal cell, from which a basal stalk-cell is cut
off. Three oblique cell-walls, intersecting near the base, are next
formed in the upper cell, and a fourth between these and parallel to
the free surface; an inner tetrahedral cell enclosed by four others is
thus formed, the outer cells become the wall of the sporangium,
while the inner cell, by a series of walls, parallel to its sides, cuts off
a layer of cells which eventually form the tapetum, the remaining
central cell constituting the archesporium.]
The spores are either oblong and bilateral, or they are tetrahedric
with curved sides, depending upon the way in which the tetrad
division has taken place.
The sporangia are almost always situated on the nerves and
gathered into groups, sori, which differ in form in the various genera.
The sori, in many genera, may be covered by a scale-like structure,
the indusium (Figs. 211 B, 212).
In the majority of cases, each sorus is situated on a small papilla
(placenta, or receptacle), which is supplied by a small vascular
bundle. Between the sporangia, hairs (paraphyses) are often
situated, which spring either from the placenta or from the stalks of
the sporangia.
Systematic Division. The Ferns may be divided into two groups,
characterized by the structure and development of the sporangia.
The sporangia in the Eusporangiatæ take their origin from a group
of epidermal cells, and their walls are formed by several layers of
cells. The archesporium is the (not tetrahedric) hypodermal terminal
cell of the axial row of cells which give rise to the sporangium. In the
Leptosporangiatæ the sporangia are developed from single
epidermal cells, and their walls are uni-layered. The archesporium is
a central, often tetrahedric cell, from which sixteen spore-mother-
cells are developed.[19] It is difficult to say which form is the oldest
(according to Prantl, those which have the sori on the nerve-
endings); however, the Eusporangiatæ would seem to have made
their appearance long before the others, and also well defined
Marattiaceæ and Ophioglossaceæ occur in the Kulm and Coal
period, before the true Polypodiaceæ.
 About 4,000 species of Ferns are now existing, and they are
found especially in tropical and sub-tropical forests.

Family 1. Eusporangiatæ.
Order 1. Ophioglossaceæ. The prothallium differs from that of all
other Ferns in being subterranean, free from chlorophyll, pale and
tuberous. The stem is extremely short, with short internodes, most
frequently unbranched, vertical, and entirely buried in the ground
(Fig. 208 st). In several species (among which are the native ones)
one leaf is produced every year, which has taken three to four years
for its development. In Botrychium a closed, sheath-like basal part of
each leaf covers the subsequent leaves during their development. In
Ophioglossum and others each leaf has at its base an intrapetiolar,
cap-like sheath, which protects the succeeding leaf. The leaves are
of two kinds: (a) foliage, which in Ophioglossum vulgatum are
lanceolate and entire, but in Botrychium however, are pinnate (b in
Fig. 208 A, B); and (b) fertile, which are found facing the upper side
of the foliage-leaves. These latter in Ophioglossum are undivided
and spike-like (Fig. 209 A), but pinnate in Botrychium (Fig. 208 B).
Each foliage and fertile leaf are branches from the same petiole. The
large sporangia are placed laterally, and open by two valves. No
annulus is formed (Fig. 209).—Ophioglossum reproduces
vegetatively by adventitious buds on the roots.
 Fig. 208.—A Ophioglossum vulgatum (Adder’s-tongue); B
Botrychium lunaria (Moonwort), both natural size; r-r roots; bs
leaf-stalk; st stem; b foliage-leaf; f fertile leaf.
 Fig. 209.—Fertile
leaf of
Ophioglossum.
Three genera with about twelve species.
Order 2. Marattiaceæ are tropical Ferns, whose gigantic leaves
resemble those of the Polypodiaceæ, but have stipules in addition.
The sporangia are grouped in sori, situated on the lower side of the
leaves, the sporangia in each sorus being arranged either in two
rows or in a ring. In Angiopteris they are isolated (Fig. 210 A), but in
the other species (Kaulfussia, Danæa, Marattia), they are united,
and form “synangia” divided into a number of chambers
corresponding to the sporangia. These open by clefts or pores.
Marattia presents the highest development, as its sporangia are
completely united in a capsule-like synangium, which is closed until
maturity, and then opens by two valves. In each valve there is a row
of three to eleven sporangia, each opening by a slit towards the
inside (Fig. 210 B, C). An indusium encloses the sorus, except in
Kaulfussia; it is formed of flat and lobed hairs, which resemble the
hairs of the other portions of the leaves. In Angiopteris and Marattia
the indusium is very rudimentary; in Danæa it forms a kind of cupule.
The numerous fossil Marattiaceæ (15 genera, with 98 species) present similar
differences to those now living, but more various forms are found, for example,
with solitary free sporangia. Those now living are the last small remnant (4 genera
with only 23 species) of a once dominant family, which existed from very early
times, and whose culminating point was reached in the Kulm and Coal periods.
The Ophioglossaceæ appear also in the Kulm and Coal periods, and were
about as numerous as at the present time (presumably 2 genera, with 19 species).
Leptosporangiate Ferns appear however to have occurred first of all in the Trias-
formation.

Fig. 210.—Sporangia of the Marattiaceæ: A Angiopteris;

B and C Marattia; C is a half sorus with nine sporangia, each
of which has opened by a longitudinal cleft.
 Family 2. Leptosporangiatæ.
Order 1. Polypodiaceæ. Sporangia on the lower side of the
leaves, stalked and provided with a vertical, incomplete annulus;
dehiscing by a transverse cleft (Fig. 211 D).—The genera are
distinguished by the form of the indusium and the position of the sori,
etc.
1. The sporangia cover the entire lower surface of the leaf
(Tropical America and Asia). Acrostichum, Platycerium.
2. Sori without indusia, circular or oval. Polypodium (Fig. 211 A).
The leaves are most frequently situated in two rows on the dorsal
side of the creeping rhizome, and fall off leaving a smooth scar
behind.—P. vulgare, common in woods, on stones. (Phegopteris also
has no indusium; see page 214).
3. The sporangia are situated in continuous lines just inside the
margin of the leaf.—Pteris[20]: the sporangia form a continuous line
along the entire margin of the leaf (Fig. 211 C), which bends over
and covers the sporangia, forming a “false-indusium.” Pteridium has
linear sori situated on a marginal vascular bundle, covered by two
linear basal indusia, of which the outer is bent over like the edge of a
leaf.—P. aquilinum (Bracken) has a wide-spreading rhizome with
large alternate leaves, placed on opposite sides, at some distance
apart. Only one leaf is developed from each branch every year.
 Fig. 211.—Portions of leaves with sori. A Polypodium. B Aspidium. C Pteridium.
D A sporangium of one of the Polypodiaceæ: r the annulus; s spores.
Adiantum (Maiden-hair): sori on the underside of small portions of the edge of
the leaf, which are bent over (false indusium). Cryptogramme (Allosorus),
Cheilanthes.
4. The sori are oval or linear, situated on one side of the vascular
bundle.—Asplenium (Fig. 212 A): sori linear; indusium with one of its
edges attached at the external side. A. ruta muraria (Wall-Rue); A.
septentrionale; A. trichomanes.—Athyrium: sori linear or curved; A.
filix-fœmina (Lady-Fern).—Scolopendrium (Fig. 212 B): sori as in
Asplenium, but situated in pairs across the lanceolate, entire leaves.
Each sorus is covered on the external side by an indusium, whose
free edges are parallel and approach each other. S. vulgare (Hart’s-
tongue).—Blechnum (B. spicant, Hard Fern; the fertile leaves differ from the
barren, the pinnæ being narrower, while the underside is almost entirely covered
with sori, and hence they are of a much darker brownish hue than the barren
ones).—Ceterach: indusium rudimentary or absent.
5. Sori circular and covered by a shield-like, or reniform indusium.
—Aspidium (Fig. 211 B); the leaves wither away and leave no scar
upon the root-stock. A. filix-mas (Male-Fern); A. spinulosum.—
Phegopteris has no indusium, the withered bases of the leaf-stalks
are persistent; P. dryopteris and P. polypodioides.
6. The indusium is situated below the sori, and has the shape of a
one-sided scale (Cystopteris, Struthiopteris), or of a cup or cupule,
which in Woodsia is sometimes fimbriate (Fig. 212 C, D).

Fig. 212.—A Asplenium. B Scolopendrium. C Woodsia; D single sorus of the

same. E Cyathea: the sporangia have fallen off in the upper sori. (All magnified.)
7. The sori are situated on the margin of the leaf, and at the end of a vascular
bundle. Indusium, semi-cupular. Davallia. Principally tropical species. 1 in S.
Europe.
This order is the greatest, comprising about 2,800 species, the
majority being perennial plants. A few are large, and known as Tree-
Ferns.
As plants in conservatories and rooms the following are cultivated: species of
Gymnogramme (tropical America), Lomaria, Nephrolepis, Pteris (P. serrulata,
cretica).
Officinal. Aspidium filix-mas, rhizome and the withered petioles.—Species of
Alsophila and Cibotium give Penghawar Djambi. The rhizome of Pteridium
aquilinum, var. esculentum, contains so much starch that it is used as food.
The other orders of true Ferns deviate from the Polypodiaceæ, especially in the
formation of the annulus, the bursting of the sporangium and its mode of
attachment and development, and in the differences in the formation of the
prothallium, etc. The principal are:—
 Order 2. Hymenophyllaceæ. To this order belong the lowest and most Moss-
like Ferns; the leaves, with the exception of the veins, are most frequently formed
of only one layer of cells, and consequently stomata are wanting; the formation of
the prothallium also somewhat resembles the Mosses. Sori marginal, on the
extremities of the vascular bundles, and surrounded by a cupular indusium. The
sporangia are sessile, with equatorial annulus. Hymenophyllum (H. tunbridgense,
European). Trichomanes (T. speciosum, European). Species about 200, which live
especially on rocks and trees in damp and shady tropical forests. Some have no
roots.
Order 3. Cyatheaceæ. Annulus complete and oblique. To this order belong,
principally, the tree-like Ferns with palm-like habit. The number of species is about
200, they are all tropical and form forests in some regions of Australia. Cibotium
and Dicksonia have marginal sori, with cupular, basal indusium. (The stem of D.
antarctica is covered with aerial roots.) Alsophila (without indusium); Cyathea with
cupular, inferior indusium (Fig. 212 E).

Fig. 213.—Gleichenia: A part of a leaf with sori; B a single sorus.

Order 4. Gleicheniaceæ. Sporangia with equatorial annulus, and longitudinal
dehiscence, most frequently groups of 3–4 in sori without indusium (Fig. 213).
Gleichenia: the apical growth of the leaves continues for a long time.
Order 5. Schizæaceæ. Annulus apical. To this order belongs Aneimia, which is
so commonly cultivated in conservatories. The two lowest pinnæ are
metamorphosed, having no leaf parenchyma and being covered with sporangia.
Schizæa. Mohria. Lygodium, a climber, whose leaves have unlimited growth and
attain a length of several metres. About 70 species. Tropical.
Order 6. Osmundaceæ. The sporangia have at the apex a lateral group of
strongly thickened cells, which gradually pass over into the ordinary cells. The
sporangia open by a longitudinal cleft. Indusium wanting. Osmunda bears the
sporangia upon peculiar, branched pinnæ, without parenchyma (the uppermost in
the leaf). O. regalis (Royal-Fern): European.
 Sub-Class 2. Hydropterideæ (formerly Rhizocarpeæ), Water Ferns.
The following further characteristics must be added to those given
on page 205:—

Fig. 214.—Salvinia natans: A microsporangium with germinating microspores

and protruding prothallia (s); B a prothallium with the bicellular antheridium (s)
growing out of the microsporangium; C the two cells of the antheridium have
opened by transverse clefts; beneath is seen the microspores enclosed by the
hardened mucilage; D spermatozoids still enclosed in the mother-cells.