Appendix
LIST OF NOTES
Note 1. On the number of known species of Fijian flowering plants.
Note 2. The littoral plants of Fiji.
Note 3. Results of long flotation experiments on the seeds or seedvessels of tropical littoral plants.
Note 4. Table illustrating the degree of buoyancy of the seeds and fruits of inland Fijian plants.
Note 5. The inland Fijian plants possessing buoyant seeds or fruits.
Note 6. Table showing the degree of buoyancy of the seeds and fruits of some inland Hawaiian plants.
Note 7. Some inland Hawaiian plants possessing buoyant seeds or fruits.
Note 8. The pyrenes of Morinda.
Note 9. The buoyancy of the fruits of Calophyllum.
Note 10. The buoyancy experiments on British plants.
Note 11. The effect of sea-water immersion on the germinating capacity of seeds and seed-vessels.
Note 12. The buoyancy of the fruits of Galium aparine.
Note 13. The buoyancy of the seeds of Convolvulus sepium.
Note 14. Other long flotation experiments.
Note 15. The occurrence inland of Silene maritima.
Note 16. The buoyancy of the seeds or fruits of the British beach-plants that also occur inland.
Note 17. The buoyancy of the seeds or fruits of the British littoral plants that frequent salt-marshes and muddy shores.
Note 18. The buoyancy of the seeds or fruits of the British littoral plants that are confined to the beach.
Note 19. On germination in sea-water.
Note 20. On the maximum heights reached by some shore plants in their extension inland in Vanua Levu, Fiji.
Note 21. On the dwarfing of shore plants when extending inland in the “talasinga” plains in Vanua Levu.
Note 22. The “talasinga” plains of Vanua Levu.
Note 23. Schimper’s grouping of the Indo-Malayan strand flora.
Note 24. Grouping of some of the characteristic plants of the strand flora of Fiji.
Note 25. The strand flora of the Tahitian region.
Note 26. The Fijian shore plants not found in Tahiti.
Note 27. The intruders into the beach flora from the inland plants of Tahiti.
Note 28. The littoral plants of the Hawaiian islands.
Note 29. Botanical notes on the coast plants of the Hawaiian islands.
Note 30. The beach drift of the Hawaiian islands.
Note 31. The inland extension of the shore plants of the Hawaiian islands.
Note 32. The Fijian species of Premna.
Note 33. De Candolle’s list of plants dispersed exclusively by currents.
Note 34. The littoral plants of the eastern-most Polynesian islands.
Note 35. Distribution of the littoral plants with buoyant seeds or fruits that occur in the Fijian, Tongan, Samoan, Tahitian, and Hawaiian Groups.
Note 36. Hawaiian plants with buoyant seeds or fruits known to be dispersed by the currents either exclusively or with the assistance of frugivorous birds.
Note 37. On vivipary in the fruits of Barringtonia racemosa and Carapa obovata.
Note 38. On the temperature and density of the surface water of the estuaries of the Rewa River in Fiji and of the Guayaquil River in Ecuador.
Note 39. On the Pacific species of Strongylodon.
Note 40. Precautions in testing seed-buoyancy.
Note 41. The buoyancy of the seeds of Convolvulus soldanella in fresh-water and sea-water compared.
Note 42. On secular changes in sea-density.
Note 43. On the mucosity of small seeds and seed-like fruits when wet.
Note 44. Upon the effects of inland extension on the buoyancy of the seeds or fruits of littoral plants.
Note 45. Tabulated results of the classification, according to Schimper’s application of the Natural Selection Theory, of the buoyant seeds and fruits of tropical littoral plants.
Note 46. On the modes of dispersal of the genus Brackenridgea.
Note 47. On the transport of gourds by currents.
Note 48. On the useless dispersal by currents of the fruits of the Oak and of other species of Quercus, as well as of the Hazel (Corylus).
Note 49. On the distribution of Ipomœa pes capræ, Convolvulus soldanella, and Convolvulus sepium.
Note 50. On the structure of the seeds and fruits of Barringtonia.
Note 51. On a common inland species of Scævola in Vanua Levu, Fiji.
Note 52. On the capacity for dispersal by currents of Colubrina oppositifolia.
Note 53. On the genus Erythrina.
Note 54. On the genus Canavalia.
Note 55. The inland extension of Scævola kœnigii.
Note 56. On the capacity for dispersal by currents of Sophora tomentosa, S. chrysophylla, and S. tetraptera.
Note 57. On the species of Ochrosia.
Note 58. On Pandanus.
Note 59. Seeds in petrels.
Note 60. Schimper on the halophilous character of littoral Leguminosæ and of shore plants generally.
Note 61. Meteorological observations on the summit of Mauna Loa.
Note 62. On the relative proportion of vascular cryptogams in Fiji.
Note 63. On the table of vascular cryptogams of Tahiti, Hawaii, and Fiji.
Note 64. On the distribution of the Tahitian ferns and lycopods.
Note 65. Distribution of some of the mountain ferns of Hawaii that are not found either in Fiji or in Tahiti.
Note 66. Endemic genera of ferns in Hawaii.
Note 67. On the dispersal of Compositæ by birds.
Note 68. On some of the Hawaiian endemic genera excluding those of the Compositæ and Lobeliaceæ.
Note 69. On the germination of Cuscuta.
Note 70. On beach-temperature.
Note 71. On the buoyancy of the seeds or seed-vessels of some Chilian shore plants.
Note 72. On the southern limit of the mangrove formation in Ecuador.
Note 73. Additional note on the temperature of the dry coast of Ecuador, between the island of Puna and the equator.
Note 74. Observations on the temperature of the Humboldt current from Antofagasta northward between January and March, 1904.
Note 75. On the stranded massive corals of the genus Porites (?) found on the coast of North Chile and Peru at Arica, Callao, and Ancon.
Note 76. Stranded pumice on English and Scandinavian beaches.
Note 77. On the mode of dispersal of Kleinhovia hospita.
Note 78. On the “Sea”, an unidentified wild fruit tree in Fiji.
Note 79. On willow-leaved river-side plants.
Note 80. Mr. Perkins on the Hawaiian Lobeliaceæ.
Note 81. On the vertical range of some of the most typical and most conspicuous of the plants in the forests on the Hamakua slopes of Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
Note 82. Aboriginal weeds.
Note 90. On the buoyancy of the seeds of Euphorbia amygdaloides and E. segetalis.
Note 91. Mr. E. Kay Robinson on Aster tripolium.
NOTE 1 (page 13)
ON THE NUMBER OF KNOWN SPECIES OF FIJIAN FLOWERING PLANTS
Rather over 600 species of flowering plants are included in Seemann’s Flora Vitiensis, excluding the weeds and the plants introduced by man. Horne’s collections would probably add another 300 species; and many more remain to be discovered.
NOTE 2 (page 13)
THE LITTORAL PLANTS OF FIJI
In the following table are incorporated the results of an extensive series of observations and experiments on the buoyancy of the seeds and fruits of the shore plants made by the author during his sojourn of two years in Fiji, and based not only on prolonged buoyancy-tests, but also on systematic examination of the stranded and floating seed-drift, both of sea and river. The details would occupy many chapters: and it is only possible here to give the bare results. Since Professor Schimper went over much the same ground in the Malayan region, one enjoys in many cases the great advantage of his authority; but a fair proportion of the results are new; and, besides, there are a number of plants included, the buoyancy of whose seeds or fruits has long been well established. In all cases the seed or fruit is taken as it presents itself for dispersal by the currents. Many of the plants are discussed with some detail in various parts of this book, as indicated in the reference column of the table.
Since the Gramineæ and the Cyperaceæ contain very few species suited for direct transport by the currents over wide areas of sea, this list may be regarded as containing nearly all the littoral flowering plants possessing seeds or seed-vessels with any buoyancy of importance.
Nearly all the Tahitian strictly littoral plants are represented in Fiji, and the few that have not been found there yet, such as Sesbania grandiflora, Heliotropium anomalum, &c., may exist, as in the first-named species, in the neighbouring Tongan group, and may probably even exist in Fiji. Two other Tahitian littoral plants, that are widely spread in the Pacific, namely, Suriana maritima and Sesuvium Portulacastrum, are found in Tonga, and are included in my list of Fijian shore plants, though not yet recorded from that group, where, however, they will, without a doubt, be found by some future observer.
TABLE SHOWING THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF THE LITTORAL PLANTS OF FIJI, EXCLUDING THE GRASSES AND, WITH ONE EXCEPTION, THE SEDGES
The letters placed before the plant name indicate that the species is also found in Hawaii (H), in Tahiti (T), and in the Marquesas (M). The Marquesan locality is only given where the plant is not in Tahiti.
The abbreviations in the reference column are as follows:
S=Schimper; G=Guppy; P=Earlier authorities and particularly the list given by Hemsley in the Introduction to the Botany of the Challenger Expedition.
Column headings:
A. Buoyancy of seeds or fruits. B. Float for months. C. Sink at once or in a week or two. D. Authorities. E. Pages of further reference. See also Index.
+--------------------------------------+--------------+-------+-------+--------+ | | | A | | | | Species. | Family. +---+---+ D | E | | | | B | C | | | +--------------------------------------+--------------+---+---+-------+--------+ |HT Calophyllum inophyllum |Guttiferæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 18 | | | | | | | | |HT Hibiscus tiliaceus |Malvaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 21 | | | | | | | | | Hibiscus diversifolius (Jacq.) |Malvaceæ. | + |...|G. | 21 | | | | | | | | |HT Thespesia populnea |Malvaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | Note 3 | | | | | | | | | H Gossypium tomentosum (Nutt.) |Malvaceæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | | Heritiera littoralis |Sterculiaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 45, 48 | | | | | | | | | T Kleinhovia hospita |Sterculiaceæ. | + |...|G. | 21 | | | | | | | | | T Triumfetta rhomboidea |Tiliaceæ. |...| +?| | | | | | | | | | | T Triumfetta procumbens |Tiliaceæ. |...| + |G. | 45 | | | | | | | | | T Suriana maritima |Simarubeæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | | Carapa moluccensis |Meliaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 45 | | | | | | | | | Carapa obovata |Meliaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 45 | | | | | | | | | T Ximenia americana |Olacineæ. | + |...|S.G. | 113 | | | | | | | | | Smythea pacifica (Seem.) |Rhamneæ. | + |...|G.P. | 106 | | | | | | | | |HT Colubrina asiatica |Rhamneæ. | + |...|G. | 137 | | | | | | | | |HT Dodonæa viscosa |Sapindaceæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Tephrosia piscatoria |Papilionaceæ. |...| + |G. | 45 | | | | | | | | | M Desmodium umbellatum |Papilionaceæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Dioclea violacea |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|G.P. | 82 | | | | | | | | | T Canavalia obtusifolia |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. |Note 54 | | | | | | | | | T Canavalia sericea |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|G. |Note 54 | | | | | | | | | T Canavalia ensiformis, var. turgida.|Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P.?|Note 54 | | | | | | | | |HT Mucuna gigantea |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 81 | | | | | | | | | T Erythrina indica |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Strongylodon lucidum |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|G. | 82 | | | | | | | | |HT Vigna lutea |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G. | 139 | | | | | | | | | Dalbergia monosperma |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G. | 106 | | | | | | | | | Derris uliginosa |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 111 | | | | | | | | | Pongamia glabra |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Sophora tomentosa |Papilionaceæ. | + |...|S.G. |Note 56 | | | | | | | | | T Inocarpus edulis |Papilionaceæ. | +?|...|G.P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Cæsalpinia Bonducella |Cæsalpinieæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | 193 | | | | | | | | | T Cæsalpinia Bonduc |Cæsalpinieæ. | + |...|G.P. | 193 | | | | | | | | | Afzelia bijuga |Cæsalpinieæ. | + |...|G. | 173 | | | | | | | | | Cynometra sp. |Cæsalpinieæ. | +?|...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | | Entada scandens |Mimoseæ. | + |...|G.P. | 181 | | | | | | | | | Acacia laurifolia |Mimoseæ. |...| + |G. | 164 | | | | | | | | | T Leucæna Forsteri |Mimoseæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | | T Serianthes myriadenia |Mimoseæ. |...| + |G. | 424 | | | | | | | | | Parinarium laurinum |Rosaceæ. | + |...|G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Eugenia Richii |Myrtaceæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | | T Barringtonia speciosa |Myrtaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Barringtonia racemosa |Myrtaceæ. | + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | | Rhizophora mucronata |Rhizophoreæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Rhizophora mangle |Rhizophoreæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Bruguiera Rheedii |Rhizophoreæ. | + |...|G.P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Terminalia Katappa |Combretaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | M Terminalia littoralis |Combretaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Lumnitzera coccinea |Combretaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Gyrocarpus Jacquini |Combretaceæ. | + |...|G. | 423 | | | | | | | | | T Pemphis acidula |Lythraceæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | | T Luffa insularum (Gray) |Cucurbitaceæ. | + |...|G. | 426 | | | | | | | | |HT Sesuvium Portulacastrum |Ficoideæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Morinda citrifolia |Rubiaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Guettarda speciosa |Rubiaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Wedelia biflora |Compositæ. | + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Scævola Koenigii |Goodeniaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | +--------------------------------------+--------------+---+---+-------+--------+
TABLE SHOWING THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF THE LITTORAL PLANTS OF FIJI, EXCLUDING THE GRASSES, AND WITH ONE EXCEPTION, THE SEDGES (continued)
Column headings:
A. Buoyancy of seeds or fruits. B. Float for months. C. Sink at once or in a week or two. D. Authorities. E. Pages of further reference. See also Index.
+--------------------------------------+--------------+-------+-------+--------+ | | | A | | | | Species. | Family +---+---+ D | E | | | | B | C | | | +--------------------------------------+--------------+---+---+-------+--------+ | T Cerbera Odollam |Apocynaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Ochrosia parviflora |Apocynaceæ. | + |...|G.P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Cordia subcordata |Boraginaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | T Tournefortia argentea |Boraginaceæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Ipomœa pes capræ |Convolvulaceæ.| + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | H Ipomœa glaberrima (Boj.) |Convolvulaceæ.| + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | | Aniseia uniflora |Convolvulaceæ.| + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | | T Premna tahitensis |Verbenaceæ. | + |...|G. |Note 32 | | | | | | | | | Clerodendron inerme |Verbenaceæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | |HM Vitex trifolia |Verbenaceæ. | + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Cassytha filiformis |Lauraceæ. | + |...|G. | | | | | | | | | | T Hernandia peltata |Lauraceæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Wikstrœmia fœtida |Thymelæaceæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | | Drymispermum Burnettianum |Thymelæaceæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | | T Euphorbia Atoto |Euphorbiaceæ. |...| + |S.P.G. | | | | | | | | | | Excæcaria Agallocha |Euphorbiaceæ. | + |...|S.G. | | | | | | | | | | T Casuarina equisetifolia |Casuarineæ. |...| + |G. | | | | | | | | | |HT Tacca pinnatifida |Taccaceæ. | + |...|G. | 19 | | | | | | | | |HT Cocos nucifera |Palmeæ. | + |...|P. | | | | | | | | | |HT Pandanus odoratissimus |Pandaneæ. | + |...|S.G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Crinum asiaticum |Amaryllideæ. |...| + |G.P. | | | | | | | | | | Scirpodendron costatum |Cyperaceæ. | + |...|G. | 407 | | | | | | | | | Cycas circinalis |Cycadeæ. | + |...|G.P. | | +--------------------------------------+--------------+---+---+-------+--------+
NOTE 3 (page 13)
RESULTS OF LONG FLOTATION EXPERIMENTS ON THE SEEDS OR SEED-VESSELS OF TROPICAL LITTORAL PLANTS
At various times during the past twenty years I have made lengthened experiments in England on the buoyancy in sea-water of the seeds or seed-vessels of beach plants collected by me in the Solomon Islands, the Fijis, Hawaii, Keeling Atoll, &c. In all the species enumerated below, the floating powers were retained after twelve months’ immersion, the seed-contents being to all appearance unharmed. In six species I succeeded in getting the seeds to germinate after the experiment; and there can be no doubt that the number of successful results would have been largely increased, if I had not been obliged to resort to very primitive methods in conducting the experiments. Some of the results are referred to in a note to my paper on the flora of Keeling Atoll, dated about 1889; and if I remember aright, Mr. Hemsley mentioned those relating to Thespesia populnea and Ipomœa grandiflora in the Annals of Botany, not long after. The others have not been previously published. In one instance (Cæsalpinia bonducella) the flotation experiment was prolonged to two and a half years, the seeds floating buoyantly and being apparently quite sound at the end of the experiment.
As demonstrating that tropical seeds can be transported unharmed by currents through cold latitudes, it should be noted that all these experiments were conducted in England. In the cases of the Keeling Atoll seeds the experiment was carried on through a very severe winter, the vessel of sea-water being exposed to a degree of cold that kept fresh-water frozen for three weeks on the same table. This did not prevent the subsequent germination of the seeds of Thespesia populnea and Ipomœa grandiflora. The same thing was established in a more natural way by Lindman, who planted seeds of Entada scandens and Mucuna urens, that had been stranded on the Norwegian coast, and found that they retained their germinating capacity (see Sernander, p. 7).
The following are the seeds or seed-vessels that remained afloat after a year’s flotation in sea-water, those that subsequently germinated being preceded by G. In the other cases the germinating capacity was not tested; but they were always sound in appearance when cut across at the close of the experiment.
G Thespesia populnea (Malvaceæ) Dioclea (violacea?) (Papilionaceæ) G Mucuna gigantea, D C (Papilionaceæ) G Mucuna urens, D C (Papilionaceæ) Mucuna, sp. (Papilionaceæ) Mucuna, sp. (Papilionaceæ) G Strongylodon lucidum, Seem. (Papilionaceæ) Sophora tomentosa, (Papilionaceæ) G Cæsalpinia bonducella (Cæsalpinieæ) Entada scandens (Mimoseæ) Morinda citrifolia (Rubiaceæ) Scævola Koenigii (Goodeniaceæ) Cordia subcordata (Boragineæ) Tournefortia argentea (Boragineæ) G Ipomœa grandiflora, Lam. (Convolvulaceæ) Tacca pinnatifida (Taccaceæ)
NOTE 4 (page 13)
TABLE ILLUSTRATING THE DEGREE OF BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS AND FRUITS OF INLAND FIJIAN PLANTS
(Unless otherwise indicated, the seeds or fruits sink at once or in a day or two)
Abrus precatorius. Acacia Richii. Ageratum conyzoides. Alphitonia excelsa. Alpinia sp. Alyxia (scandens?). Artocarpus incisa. Artocarpus integrifolia. Barringtonia edulis (1 month) Barringtonia sp. Bauhinia sp. Bischoffia javanica. Cæsalpinia sp. Calophyllum spectabile (2-4 weeks). Calophyllum Burmanni (4-10 days). Cananga odorata. Canarium sp. Canarium sp. Canna indica. Citrus aurantium (3-4 weeks). Citrus decumana (1 month). Citrus limonum (5 weeks). Citrus vulgaris, R. (6-7 weeks). Coix lachryma (2-7 days). Commersonia platyphylla. Cordyline sepiaria. Couthovia corynocarpa (a few days). Cucumis acidus (a few days). Cucurbita sp. (several months). Cupania sp. Dammara vitiensis (7-10 days). Dioscorea sativa (a few days). Dioscorea sp. Dracontomelon sylvestre. Dracontomelon sp. Elæocarpus sp. Elæocarpus sp. (a few days). Eranthemum sp. Eugenia malaccensis (2-4 weeks). Eugenia effusa? (4-7 days). Eugenia confertiflora? (10-12 days). Eugenia rariflora (a few days). Eugenia corynocarpa (a few days). Eugenia rivularis (a week). Fagræa Berteriana (a few days). Ficus Harveyi (7-10 days). Ficus scabra (7-10 days). Ficus sp. (7-10 days). Gardenia vitiensis (4-5 weeks). Geissois ternata. Geophila reniformis. Gnetum gnemon. Grewia sp. Guettarda sp. (a few weeks). Hibiscus Abelmoschus (months). Hibiscus seculentus. Hydrocotyle asiatica (months). Ipomœa batatas. Ipomœa insularis (nil or months). Ipomœa peltata (weeks or months). Ipomœa turpethum (nil or weeks or months). Ipomœa sp. (7-10 days). Lindenia vitiensis (weeks or months). Maba sp. (7-10 days). Macaranga sp. (1-2 weeks). Melastoma denticulatum. Micromelum minutum. Momordica Charantia (a few days). Morinda Forsteri. Mussænda frondosa. Myristica sp. (3-7 days) Myristica sp. (3-7 days) Myrmecodia sp. Nelitris vitiensis (a few days). Nephelium pinnatum (a few days). Ophiorrhiza leptantha. Phyllanthus sp. Phyllanthus sp. Piper Macgillivrayi. Pittosporum sp. Pleiosmilax vitiensis. Portulaca (lutea?). Portulaca quadrifida. Premna serratifolia. Pritchardia pacifica. Psychotria sp. Psychotria sp. Psychotria sp. Psychotria sp. Psychotria sp. Ptychosperma sp. Rhaphidophora vitiensis. Sapota sp. (a few days) Sapota sp. (a few days) Scævola floribunda. Spondias dulcis (a month). Sterculia sp. (seeds nil, fruits months). Stylocoryne sambucina (2 or 3 days). Tabernæmontana (orientalis?) (a few days). Tacca maculata (nil or a few days). Trichospermum Richii (a few days). Urena lobata. Veitchia Joannis. Veitchia sp.
NOTE 5 (page 14).
THE INLAND FIJIAN PLANTS POSSESSING BUOYANT SEEDS OR FRUITS
They come under the following heads:
(a) Plants of the stream-border or the pond-side or of the inland swamp, e.g., Lindenia vitiensis and Hydrocotyle asiatica. The extension of the principle by which plants with buoyant seeds or fruits are located, not only at the sea-side but at the water-side generally, is here involved, as explained in Chapter III.
(b) Plants following the rule deduced by Schimper for Terminalia, that when a genus comprises several species possessing buoyant fruits, only those having fruits with the greatest floating power are found at the coast, the least buoyant plants occurring inland; examples, Calophyllum and Guettarda.
(c) Plants that like Ipomœa behave irregularly in respect to seed-buoyancy, a difference in behaviour often associated with varying stations both at the coast and inland.
(d) Plants with dehiscent buoyant capsular fruits, like Sterculia, where dehiscence takes place on the tree and the seeds have no buoyancy. Although the unopened fruit may float a long time, it does not in that condition come under the influence of the currents.
(e) Plants like Citrus Decumana, Gardenia, sp., &c., that, although apparently exceptions to the principle, do not offer much opposition to it, since the first is most at home at the river-side and the second often displays a decided inclination for a station at the coast.
(f) Genuine exceptions to the principle, such as Hibiscus Abelmoschus (see page 21).
NOTE 6 (page 15)
TABLE SHOWING THE DEGREE OF BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS AND FRUITS OF SOME INLAND HAWAIIAN PLANTS
(Unless otherwise stated, the seeds or fruits sink at once or in a day or two)
Acacia Koa. Aleurites moluccana (1-2 weeks). Alyxia olivæformis. Argemone mexicana. Argyreia tiliæfolia (nil or months). Bidens pilosa. Campylotheca sp. Canavalia galeata. Capparis sandwicensis. Cassia Gaudichaudii. Cassia occidentalis. Cheirodendron Gaudichaudii. Colubrina oppositifolia (weeks). Commelina nudiflora. Coprosma ernodeoides. Coprosma sp. Coprosma sp. Cyathodes Tameiameiæ (a few days). Cyrtandra sp. (a few days). Cyrtandra sp. (a few days). Cyrtandra sp. (a few days). Dianella odorata (a few days). Dracæna aurea. Eclipta alba (months). Erythrina monosperma. Gossypium tomentosum (a week). Gossypium barbadense (a few days). Gossypium sp. cultiv. (a few days). Hibiscus Youngianus (weeks). Hydrocotyle verticillata (weeks). Ipomœa bona nox (nil or months). Ipomœa insularis. Ipomœa pentaphylla. Ipomœa reptans. Ipomœa tuberculata. Jacquemontia sandwicensis. Jussiæa villosa (a few days). Lobeliaceæ (Clermontia). Maba sandwicensis. Metrosideros polymorpha. Mezoneuron kauaiense (pod, a week). Mucuna urens (months). Myoporum sandwicense. Olea sandwicensis, see page 364. Phyllostegia grandiflora. Phyllostegia mollis. Plectronia odorata. Pritchardia Gaudichaudii (5 or 6 weeks). Ricinus communis (7-10 days). Rubus Macraei. Scævola Chamissoniana. Scævola Gaudichaudii. Sida fallax. Sisyrinchium acre. Solanum aculeatissimum. Sophora chrysophylla (pod, 1-2 weeks). Viola Chamissoniana. Waltheria americana.
NOTE 7 (page 15)
SOME INLAND HAWAIIAN PLANTS POSSESSING BUOYANT SEEDS OR FRUITS
Three of these, Eclipta alba, Hibiscus Youngianus, and Hydrocotyle verticillata, frequent wet places, and come under the principle that water-side plants generally have buoyant seeds or fruits. The buoyancy of the seeds of Argyreia tiliæfolia and of Ipomœa bona nox varies with station and may be explained as under Ipomœa in Note 5. The floating power of the fruits of Colubrina oppositifolia may be akin to that of inland species of Terminalia as indicated in Note 5, since another species of the genus C. asiatica, which is a coast plant, has very buoyant seeds. Mucuna urens was no doubt originally, as it now is in tropical America, a littoral plant. The buoyant fruits of Pritchardia Gaudichaudii offer a genuine exception to the principle (see page 330).
NOTE 8 (pages 18, 112)
THE PYRENES OF MORINDA
The pyrenes of the two Malayan inland species of Morinda (M. umbellata and M. longiflora) examined by Professor Schimper do not possess the bladder-like cavity to which those of M. citrifolia owe their floating power, and it is to be inferred from his remarks (p. 183) that they have little or no buoyancy. The pyrenes of a Fijian inland species, near M. Grayi, had no floating power as tested by me, and they lacked the bladder-like cavity.
NOTE 9 (page 18)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE FRUITS OF CALOPHYLLUM
Professor Schimper found that whilst the fruits of Calophyllum inophyllum, the shore tree, remained afloat after 126 days, those of C. amœnum, an inland species, sank in from three to fourteen days, both possessing similar buoyant structures, but to a less degree in the case of the inland species. This genus presents a parallel case to Terminalia referred to on page 17; but the general discussion of the subject will be found in Chapter XIII. According to the above authority C. Calaba, a West Indian coast tree, has buoyant fruits. The same is also true of the fruits of a large inland tree in the Solomon Islands experimented on by me (Solomon Islands, p. 305). It would thus appear that the fruits of the genus are as a rule buoyant, and that, as in Terminalia, the least buoyant fruits belong to the inland species. Professor Schimper also shows (p. 182) that the diminished floating power of the fruits of the inland species is associated with diminution in thickness of the buoyant seed-shell which is most developed in the buoyant fruits of the strand species.
NOTE 10 (page 24)
THE BUOYANCY EXPERIMENTS ON BRITISH PLANTS
The experiments in all cases were made to test the floating power of the seed or fruit in the condition in which it is detached from the plant. It usually makes very little difference whether sea-water or fresh water is employed, since in my numerous experiments there were but few exceptions to the general rule that seeds or seed-vessels that sink in fresh water sink also in sea-water. This subject is discussed in Chapter X. However, it may be here observed that the chief effect of the increased density of sea-water is merely to increase the proportion of buoyant seeds or fruits in any particular species.
It is necessary in such experiments to imitate Nature as much as possible. The seed or fruit, as the case may be, must be experimented upon in the condition in which it falls from the plant, or in the condition in which it would be ultimately found in river and pond drift. The seed or fruit should be thoroughly wetted, and air-bubbles removed.
Prolonged drying has but a slight effect on the great majority of seeds and seed-vessels experimented on, and this is just as true of tropical plants. Those that sink at once in the mature and fresh condition rarely float more than a day or two even after drying for a year. The usual effect is to increase the floating capacity of seeds and fruits already buoyant, and not to develop the capacity.
The results given in the table refer only to sound seeds. In fresh-water experiments, in nearly all cases, the seeds ultimately germinate in the water, and this is the usual cause of the close of the experiment. In an ordinary collection of floating seed drift from a pond or river, germination will go on for years at each successive spring, the postponement of germination being a very striking feature with a fair proportion of seeds in river and pond-drift. This subject is dealt with in detail in my paper published in the Proceedings for 1897 of the Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh.
THE TABLE OF RESULTS OF OBSERVATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS ON THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR SEED-VESSELS OF MORE THAN 300 BRITISH FLOWERING PLANTS
EXPLANATION OF TABLE.—The capacity of floating for months is thus indicated, ++; of floating for 1 to 4 weeks, +; and where sinking occurs at once or within a week there is no entry. When buoyancy continued in my experiments after 6 and 12 months, it is indicated by Roman numerals (VI and XII). A=an aquatic plant; M=a beach plant; R=a river-side or pond-side plant; var.=variable in floating power.
+--------------------------------------+----+------+ |R Thalictrum flavum | | | |A Ranunculus aquatilis | | | |R Ranunculus hederaceus | | | |R Ranunculus flammula | | | | Ranunculus ficaria | | | |R Ranunculus sceleratus VI | ++ | Var. | | Ranunculus acris | | | | Ranunculus repens XII | ++ | Var. | |R Caltha palustris | + | | | Berberis vulgaris | | | |A Nymphæa alba | | | |A Nuphar luteum | | | | Papaver rhœas | | | | Papaver dubium | | | | Chelidonium majus | | | | Rœmeria hybrida | | | |M Glaucium luteum | | | | Barbarea vulgaris | | | |R Nasturtium officinale | | | |R Nasturtium sylvestre | | | |R Nasturtium amphibium | | | | Arabis hirsuta | | | | Arabis thaliana | | | |R Cardamine pratensis | | | | Cardamine hirsuta | | | | Alliaria officinalis | | | | Brassica campestris | | | | Brassica alba | | | |M Cochlearia officinalis | | | |M Alyssum maritimum | | | | Draba verna | | | | Thlaspi arvense | | | | Capsella bursa pastoris | | | |M Cakile maritima | + | | |M Crambe maritima | + | | |M Raphanus maritimus | + | | | Reseda luteola | | | | Helianthemum vulgare | | | |R Viola palustris | | | | Viola canina | | | | Viola tricolor | | | | Polygala vulgaris | | | | Silene cucubalus | | | |M Silene maritima | | | | Lychnis diurna | | | | Sagina procumbens | | | |M Arenaria peploides (Honckeneya) XII | ++ | | | Mœnchia erecta | | | | Cerastium vulgatum | | | |R Stellaria aquatica | | | | Stellaria media | | | | Stellaria graminea | | | | Stellaria holostea | | | | Spergularia rubra | | | |M Spergularia marina | | | | Spergula arvensis | | | |R Montia fontana | | | |R Elatine hydropiper | | | | Hypericum perforatum | | | | Hypericum quadrangulum | | | |R Hypericum elodes | | | | Linum usitatissimum | | | | Linum angustifolium | | | | Malva rotundifolia | | | | Malva sylvestris | | | | Oxalis acetosella | | | | Oxalis corniculata | | | | Impatiens parviflora | | | |R Impatiens fulva VI | ++ | | | Acer campestre | | | | Ilex aquifolium | | | | Euonymus europæus | + | | | Ulex europæus | | | | Cytisus scoparius | | | | Ononis arvensis | | | | Medicago lupulina | | | | Medicago denticulata | | | | Trifolium incarnatum | | | | Lotus corniculatus | | | | Anthyllis vulneraria | | | | Vicia sativa | | | | Lathyrus pratensis | | | |M Lathyrus maritimus | ++ | | |R Spiræa ulmaria | + | | | Fragaria vesca | | | | Potentilla tormentilla | | | | Potentilla sp. | | | |R Potentilla comarum XII | ++ | | | Alchemilla arvensis | | | | Rosa arvensis | | | | Cratægus oxyacantha | + | | |R Epilobium hirsutum | | | | Epilobium parviflorum | | | |R Lythrum salicaria | | | |R Peplis portula | | | | Bryonia dioica | | | | Cotyledon umbilicus | | | | Saxifraga granulata | | | | Saxifraga tridactylites | | | |R Chrysosplenium alternifolium | | | |R Chrysosplenium oppositifolium | | | | Drosera rotundifolia | + | | |A Myriophyllum spicatum | | | |A Myriophyllum alternifolium | | | |R Hydrocotyle vulgaris XII | ++ | | |M Eryngium maritimum | | | |R Cicuta virosa | ++ | | |R Apium graveolens | | | |R Apium nodiflorum | | | |R Apium inundatum | | | |R Sium latifolium | ++ | | |R Sium angustifolium | ++ | | |R Œnanthe crocata VI | ++ | | |R Œnanthe phellandrium | + | | | Æthusa cynapium | | | |M Crithmum maritimum | ++ | | |R Angelica sylvestris XII | ++ | | |R Peucedanum palustre | ++ | | | Pastinaca sativa | | | | Chærophyllum sylvestre | | | | Smyrnium olusatrum | | | | Hedera helix | | | | Viscum album | | | | Sambucus nigra | | | |R Galium palustre VI | ++ | | | Galium mollugo | | | | Galium aparine | | | | Centranthus ruber | | | | Valerianella olitoria | | | | Eupatorium cannabinum | | | |M Aster tripolium | | | |R Bidens cernua VI | ++ | | |R Bidens tripartita VI | ++ | | | Chrysanthemum segetum | | | | Chrysanthemum leucanthemum | | | | Matricaria inodora | | | |M Matricaria inodora, var. maritima | ++ | | | Matricaria chamomilla | | | | Achillea millefolium | | | | Artemisia vulgaris | | | | Artemisia absinthium | | | | Tussilago farfara | | | | Tussilago petasites | | | | Senecio vulgaris | | | |R Senecio aquaticus | | | |R Senecio palustris | | | | Carduus nutans | | | | Carduus lanceolatus | | | |R Carduus palustris | | | | Carduus arvensis | | | | Tragopogon pratensis | | | | Tragopogon porrifolius | | | | Tragopogon echioides | | | | Leontodon autumnalis | | | | Sonchus oleraceus | | | | Taraxacum dens leonis | | | | Crepis virens | | | | Crepis fœtida | | | | Lapsana communis | | | |A Lobelia Dortmanna | | | |R Hottonia palustris | | | |R Lysimachia vulgaris | + | | |R Lysimachia thyrsiflora | + | | |M Glaux maritima | | | | Anagallis arvensis | | | |M Samolus valerandi | | | | Pinguicula lusitanica | | | | Ligustrum vulgare | | | |R Menyanthes trifoliata | ++ | | |R Limnanthemum nymphæoides | + | | | Convolvulus arvensis | | | | Convolvulus sepium XII | ++ | | |M Convolvulus soldanella XII | ++ | | | Cuscuta europæa | | | | Lithospermum officinale | | | |R Myosotis palustris | | | | Myosotis arvensis | | | | Myosotis versicolor | | | | Lycopsis arvensis | | | | Symphytum officinale | | | | Borago officinalis | | | | Datura stramonium | | | | Solanum dulcamara | | | | Solanum nigrum | | | | Linaria vulgaris | | | | Linaria cymbalaria | | | | Scrophularia nodosa | | | |R Scrophularia aquatica | | | |R Veronica anagallis | | | |R Veronica beccabunga | | | | Veronica agrestis | | | | Veronica arvensis | | | | Bartsia odontites | | | | Rhinanthus crista galli VI | ++ | Var. | |R Pedicularis palustris | ++ | | | Salvia verbenaca | | | |R Lycopus europæus XII | ++ | | |R Mentha aquatica VI | ++ | | | Thymus sp. | | | | Calamintha officinalis | | | | Nepeta glechoma | | | | Nepeta cataria | | | | Prunella vulgaris | | | |R Scutellaria galericulata XII | ++ | | | Stachys betonica | | | | Stachys sylvatica | | | |R Stachys palustris | ++ | | | Stachys arvensis | | | | Galeopsis tetrahit | | | | Ballota nigra | | | | Lamium purpureum | | | | Lamium album | | | | Lamium galeobdolon | | | | Teucrium scorodonia | | | | Ajuga reptans | | | | Verbena officinalis | | | |M Armeria vulgaris | | | | Plantago major | | | | Plantago media | | | | Plantago lanceolata | | | |M Plantago maritima | | | |M Salicornia herbacea | | | |M Salsola kali | + | | |M Suæda fruticosa | | | |M Suæda maritima | | | | Chenopodium album | | | |M Beta maritima | | | | Atriplex patula VI | ++ | | |R Rumex aquaticus | + | | | Rumex crispus | ++ | | | Rumex obtusifolius | | | |R Rumex hydrolapathum XII | ++ | | |R Rumex conglomeratus XII | ++ | | | Polygonum aviculare | | | |M Polygonum maritimum | | | | Polygonum convolvulus | | | |R Polygonum amphibium | | | |R Polygonum persicaria | | | | Polygonum lapathifolium | | | |R Polygonum hydropiper | | | | Euphorbia helioscopia | | | | Euphorbia segetalis | | | |M Euphorbia paralias | ++ | | | Euphorbia peplus (?) | | | | Euphorbia amygdaloides | | | |A Ceratophyllum demersum | | | |A Callitriche aquatica | | | | Urtica dioica | | | | Ulmus campestris | | | |R Alnus glutinosa XII | ++ | | | Betula alba | | | | Corylus avellana | + | | | Quercus robur | + | | | Pinus sylvestris | + | | | Taxus baccata | | | |R Typha latifolia | | | |R Typha angustifolia | | | |R Sparganium ramosum XII | ++ | | |R Sparganium simplex VI | ++ | Var. | |R Sparganium minimum | ++ | | | Arum maculatum | | | |R Calla palustris XII | ++ | | |A Lemna minor | ++ | | |A Lemna gibba | | | |A Naias marina | | | |A Zannichellia palustris | | | |A Ruppia maritima | | | |A Potamogeton natans XII | ++ | | |A Potamogeton oblongus VI | ++ | | |A Potamogeton lucens VI | ++ | | |A Potamogeton perfoliatus | ++ | | |A Potamogeton crispus | | | |A Potamogeton densus | | | |A Potamogeton obtusifolius | | | |A Potamogeton pusillus | | | |R Butomus umbellatus | | | |R Sagittaria sagittifolia VI | ++ | Var. | |R Alisma plantago VI | ++ | Var. | |R Alisma ranunculoides | | | |A Alisma natans | | | |R Damasonium stellatum | | | |R Scheuchzeria palustris | ++ | | |R Triglochin palustre | | | |R Triglochin maritimum | | | |A Hydrocharis morsus ranæ | | | |R Iris pseudacorus XII | ++ | | | Iris fœtidissima | | | | Tamus communis | | | | Fritillaria meleagris | ++ | | | Scilla nutans | | | | Narthecium ossifragum | | | |R Juncus communis | | | | Juncus glaucus | | | |R Juncus articulatus | | | | Juncus squarrosus | | | |R Juncus bufonius | | | |M Juncus maritimus | | | | Luzula campestris | | | |R Cladium mariscus | ++ | | |R Blysmus rufus | ++ | | |R Scirpus palustris | | | |A Scirpus fluitans | | | | Scirpus setaceus | | | | Scirpus holoschœnus | | | |R Scirpus lacustris | | | |M Scirpus maritimus | + | | | Scirpus sylvaticus | | | | Eriophorum alpinum | | | | Eriophorum vaginatum | | | | Eriophorum polystachion | | | |R Carex leporina | ++ | | | Carex stellulata XII | ++ | | |R Carex canescens | ++ | | | Carex remota XII | ++ | | |R Carex paniculata XII | ++ | | |R Carex vulpina XII | ++ | | |R Carex acuta VI | ++ | | | Carex hirta | | | |R Carex flava VI | ++ | Var. | | Carex distans | | | | Carex panicea | | | |R Carex pseudocyperus VI | ++ | | |R Carex ampullacea | + | | |R Carex paludosa XII | ++ | | | Carex sp. | | | | Carex sp. | | | |R Leersia oryzoides | | | |R Alopecurus geniculatus | | | | Agrostis sp. | | | | Agrostis sp. | | | |R Poa aquatica | | | |R Poa fluitans | | | | Melica nutans | | | |R Arundo phragmites | +? | | +--------------------------------------+----+------+
Total of the original list: 320 species belonging to 192 genera and 65 families. Of these, about 260 were tested by the author, the data for the remaining species being mainly derived from the writings of Thuret, Kolpin-Ravn, and Sernander, with a few from those of Darwin and Martins.
NOTE.—Whilst this work has been going through the press, the author has added thirteen species, seven genera, and two families to the list above given; but the general inferences are not affected by the additions. The corrected total would, therefore, be 333 species, 199 genera, and 67 families.
On the effect of drying on the buoyancy of seeds and seed-vessels
It has been already observed that this is as a rule but slight, and that in the great majority of cases the effect of prolonged drying for many months, or even for years, is at the most to give a seed or fruit originally non-buoyant a floating power of a few days’ duration. This is a subject to which I have paid especial attention in my experiments, since, of course, much depends on it in the way of dispersal by currents. It is obvious that a seed or fruit possessing impermeable coverings at the time of its separation from the parent can scarcely be compared with one where the coverings only attain their water-proof capacity by drying. Most gardeners know that seeds which dry easily take up moisture easily, and the principle applies in a varying degree to the great majority of seeds and fruits.
Darwin was inclined to attach importance to adventitious buoyancy acquired by drying; and in the Origin of Species he refers to instances offered by the fruits of the Hazel (Corylus), the Asparagus, and Heliosciadium. In Note 48 I have referred to the cases of the Oak and the Hazel; and, indeed, we have only to examine the beach-drift in various parts of the world, and to look at their respective stations, to learn that this is not an effective mode of dispersal. Buoyancy of seed or fruit is only one of many other qualities that is concerned with distribution by currents. Nature does not act in this way in seed-distribution, and there can be little doubt that the author of the Origin of Species would have been the first to abandon this view, if his researches had been continued. It should be especially noted that plants of the sea-beach, where the floating power happens to be nil, or limited only to a week or two, would have derived great advantage from the drying of their seeds or fruits if it was really effective in aiding dispersal by currents. However, with plants like Cakile maritima, Eryngium maritimum, Glaucium luteum, &c., the effect of drying is very small.
NOTE 11 (page 25)
THE EFFECT OF SEA-WATER IMMERSION ON THE GERMINATING CAPACITY OF SEEDS AND SEED-VESSELS
Berkeley, Darwin, Martins, and others, long ago established the capacity of seeds to germinate after prolonged immersion in sea-water. The reader will find a resumé of their results in the appendix to Mr Hemsley’s volume on the Botany of the Challenger Expedition. The subject is well illustrated in the original papers of those authors, and in my later papers on the flora of Keeling Atoll, and on the seed-drift of the Thames.
I may here remark that the earlier observers often pay more attention to the retention of the germinating capacity after sea-water immersion than to the degree of buoyancy. For this reason I have not been able to make great use of the buoyancy results of Martins, since he frequently does not distinguish between temporary and long-sustained buoyancy, an objection also pointed out by Thuret and Hemsley.
NOTE 12 (page 27)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE FRUITS OF GALIUM APARINE
Norman and Sernander (see p. 172) attribute considerable buoyancy to these fruits on account of the hollow cavity in each. I used to find them in England in floating river-drift in autumn; and Norman observed them on the Scandinavian beaches. They do not, however, float long, as the cavity is open; and in two sets of my experiments they sank within a few days.
NOTE 13 (page 29)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OF CONVOLVULUS SEPIUM
This plant seeded freely in 1893 in the Lower Thames Valley, as at Molesey. I kept some of the seeds afloat for thirty-three months, of which the first nine months were spent in sea-water and the rest in fresh-water. One seed, at the end of the period, germinated healthily in the fresh-water.
NOTE 14 (page 26)
OTHER LONG FLOTATION EXPERIMENTS
Whilst keeping my collections of Thames seed-drift in water from year to year, I obtained a number of records of long “flotations.” Thus in several cases, as with Bidens cernua and different species of Carex, germination of the floating fruit took place in the water after a period of two years. The same is also true of the seeds of Iris pseudacorus and of the drupes of Sparganium ramosum. The last-named remained afloat in the vessels, with the seed still sound, after four years; and the fruits of Carex paludosa germinated afloat after three years in water. Many drift fruits and seeds did not germinate freely in the vessels until the second spring, that is, after a lapse of eighteen months; and in those cases where the experiments were still further prolonged, a few germinated in the vessels in the third and sometimes even in the fourth year.
NOTE 15 (pages 33, 280)
THE OCCURRENCE INLAND OF SILENE MARITIMA
Prof. Schimper appeared to be in doubt as to the inclusion of this littoral plant amongst those found in elevated mountain districts. However, an interesting note on the occurrence of this plant on the summit of one of the inland Norwegian mountains is given by Sernander (p. 405), and is referred to by me on page 280 of this work.
NOTE 16 (page 34)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF THE BRITISH BEACH-PLANTS THAT ALSO OCCUR INLAND
My experiments in the case of Armeria vulgaris, Artemisia, Cochlearia officinalis, Plantago, the maritime forms of Spergularia rubra with and without winged seeds, and Silene maritima disclose little or no floating capacity even after prolonged drying. Thuret obtained similar results for the Spergularia. It is unlikely that other plants of the group possess any floating power worth speaking of. As indicated in Note 71, the fruits of Raphanus maritimus float only for 7 to 10 days.
Nature disperses the fruits of Armeria vulgaris inclosed in the persistent calyx; but in this condition they float only for 2 to 4 days in sea-water, and the buoyancy of the capsule and seed is still more limited. They are sufficiently light to be blown some distance by strong winds, and the stiff hairs would cause them to adhere to a bird’s plumage in the case of gulls nesting where the plants grow.
Reference to Matricaria inodora is made under Note 18.
NOTE 17 (page 35)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF THE GROUP OF BRITISH LITTORAL PLANTS THAT FREQUENT SALT MARSHES AND MUDDY SHORES
Aster tripolium. The achenes, with or without the pappus, sink in fresh and salt water in a day or two even after a year’s drying.
Glaux maritima } Plantago maritima } The small seeds, or the seed-like nucules as Samolus valerandi } in Suæda, have but little floating power Suæda fruticosa } even after prolonged drying. Suæda maritima }
Salicornia herbacea. Would be dispersed probably by floating portions of the plant, which, however, soon break down and the liberated seeds sink. The floating seedling thrives in sea-water and could be carried great distances (see Note 19).
Salsola kali. I experimented on this plant, both on the coast of Devonshire and in Chile, with the same results in both localities whether in the fresh state or after drying for weeks. The fruit sinks, but when the plant dries the fruit is often detached inclosed in the perianth, and floats in that condition in sea-water for a few days. Portions of the plant of various sizes bearing mature fruits all sank within ten days. It would seem at first sight, from the observations of Prof. Martins, that the fruits float for several weeks; but his experiments were mainly directed to testing the powers of germination after sea-water immersion; and it is often not at all clear whether flotation is implied or even to be correctly inferred. There is a slight suspicion of germination on the plant. Sea-birds doubtless aid in the dispersion of this plant; the dry crisp portions of the plant carrying fruits catch readily in one’s clothes on account of the prickly-pointed leaves.
Scirpus maritimus. The fresh fruits float a few weeks in sea-water in most cases, but 10 per cent. remain afloat after two months. After drying for some months 30 per cent. remain floating after two months’ immersion.
} The fruits float a few days or a week. Drying Triglochin maritimum } somewhat increases the buoyancy. Sir W. Triglochin palustre } Buller in New Zealand found in the gullet } of Anas superciliosa, the Grey Duck, numbers } of the fruits of Triglochin triandrum.
NOTE 18 (page 35)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF THE BRITISH LITTORAL PLANTS THAT ARE CONFINED TO THE BEACH
Arenaria (Honckeneya) peploides. The seeds float for many months in sea-water unharmed, 75 per cent. floating after a year. They never germinate in sea-water; but on being transferred to fresh water after many months in sea-water they germinate healthily in a few days. These seeds only float a few days in fresh water, all sinking within 10 days, and even after a year’s drying they sink in a week or two. Precisely the same results were produced in my experiments in 1892 on Cornish seeds, and in 1904 on Devonshire seeds. In the great contrast between their floating capacity in sea-water and in fresh water the seeds of this plant defy the general rule that seeds that float a long time in sea-water float also a long time in fresh-water. According also to Sernander the seeds float a long time in the sea. He says that the capsules float, but since they ultimately dehisce this could scarcely be efficacious in dispersal. Floating portions of the plant also aid in its dispersal, according to the same authority (p. 174). The plant forms great extended masses on the pebbly shores of Spitzbergen (Ekstam, p. 28).
Beta maritima. Thuret found that the dried fruits of this plant floated only two or three days in sea-water; whilst in my sea-water experiments the freshly gathered fruits floated only one or two days. Sernander speaks of them as fitted for dispersal from shore to shore; but this could only be to a limited extent. Martins and Thuret established by experiment the capacity of the germination of seeds of other species of Beta after long immersion in sea-water; and the first seems to imply that those of Beta vulgaris float for many weeks; but I am inclined to think an error lies here.
Cakile maritima. The fruits, even after long drying, float, as a rule, only a week and sink within ten days, the same results being afforded in my sea-water experiments in 1893 on fruits from Cornwall, and in 1904 on fruits from Devonshire. The fruits are common in the stranded drift on the north coast of Devonshire and may often be seen germinating there. They are also frequent in the beach drift of the Scandinavian coasts (Sernander, p. 156).
Crambe maritima. The fruits were kept floating by Sernander more than 13 days (p. 165). Martins implies that they floated for 45 days. Darwin says that they germinated after 37 days’ immersion in sea-water, but does not specify that they floated all the time.
Crithmum maritimum. The ripe fruits readily separate into the two carpels, which are very buoyant and float in sea-water for months. In my experiments, 95 per cent. remained afloat after 10 months. It is remarkable that whilst in sea-water the spongy covering of the carpels retains its vitality, in fresh-water it becomes sickly and decays and the carpels lose their floating power, so that they float weeks instead of months as in the sea-water. The carpels are extremely light, being washed up in the spray and blown up by the wind amongst the lightest of the stranded drift of the Devonshire beaches. In a moderate gale they are often blown off the beach and up the cliff-faces.
Convolvulus soldanella. From 40 to 50 per cent. of the seeds float after six months in sea-water, and about 30 per cent. float after eighteen months, retaining up to the end their germinating capacity. Sernander implies that the plant is not found on the Scandinavian coast to the north of Nissum Fjord in Denmark. It is known, however, to occur in the south of Scotland. (I am indebted to Mr. Millett for his extremely kind assistance in experimenting on this plant about ten years since.)
Eryngium maritimum. The fruits float in sea-water, as a rule, only 3 or 4 days and all sink within a week. After drying for three months, the floating period is only increased by a day or two. Though not at all suited for transport for any distance by the currents, the carpels, on account of their long prickly calyx teeth, would readily become entangled in a bird’s plumage, and doubtless they are dispersed usually in that fashion.
Euphorbia paralias. The seeds float a long time unharmed in the sea. In my experiments at least 90 per cent. remained afloat after six weeks in sea-water. On account of their small size they are liable to be overlooked in beach drift; but they are to be found stranded on the sands of our southern coasts, and they came under my notice in abundance in the seed-drift of the Sicilian beaches.
Glaucium luteum.—The seeds have no proper buoyancy even after prolonged drying. On account of their oiliness they will float at first on still water; but they can be made to sink at once or in a day by dropping water upon them. The mode of dispersal is problematical.
Lathyrus maritimus.—The seeds are evidently able to float a long time. They were, according to Sernander (p. 178), found in quantities by J. Schmidt cast up on some sand-islets near Falster in Denmark; and the plant is regarded by Norman as distributed over the coasts of Arctic Norway through the agency of the currents. They have, as observed by Schmidt, considerable floating powers. Some small leguminous seeds, seemingly of this species, which I found in the beach drift of Woollacombe Sands, Devonshire, floated uninjured for many weeks in sea-water.
Matricaria maritima, maritime variety of M. inodora. The fruits floated in my experiments unharmed after eight months in sea-water. In an experiment made some years since on the fruits of the inland form I noted that they had little or no buoyancy; but it is necessary to repeat the observation. Sernander (p. 181) supports Norman’s view that these plants are spread by the currents in Arctic Norway. The fruits occur in the Baltic sea-drift and also in fresh-water drift. M. inodora is found on sandy beaches in Nova Zembla. I am inclined to regard the maritime form from the dispersal standpoint as a distinct species.
Polygonum maritimum.—I have made observations on this plant in Devonshire, the Lipari Islands, and the coast of Chile. As in the case of several other species of Polygonum tested by me the fruits have little or no buoyancy, but inclosed in the perianth they float three or four days. The entire plant floats; but portions placed in sea-water sank within five or six days. Shore-birds can alone explain the wide distribution of this species.
The structural characters of some of these fruits or seeds are in their relation to buoyancy discussed on page 115. It may be here observed that the valuable results obtained by Prof. Martins in testing the germinating capacity of the fruits and seeds of several of the shore-plants above mentioned, after long immersion in sea-water, are at times not to be depended on for the flotation indications, the persistence of the seed’s vitality being the special purpose of his research. His negative results as regards germination are not, however, always conclusive, since the period employed from April to June was quite insufficient. In many of my experiments seeds after long flotation in sea-water did not germinate for a year or more afterwards. If his investigation had been extended, the opinion that the Ranunculaceæ, the Malvaceæ, and the Convolvulaceæ are apparently least able to resist the action of sea-water would never have been formed. A very large amount of evidence now shows that most seeds or fruits that are at all well protected will germinate after long immersion in sea-water. But all experiments must be well safeguarded and extended over a year or two. The necessity of this was long since shown by Thuret. By employing double sets of seeds he ascertained that in a third of the species germination failed not only in the case of the seeds immersed in sea-water, but also in those that had not been placed in sea-water at all. Future investigators may, however, regard the buoyant qualities of seeds or fruits with their associated structural characters as offering now the true line of research. Observers beginning with Berkeley and Darwin down to the present time have quite established the fact that seeds as a rule germinate freely after long sea-water immersion.
NOTE 19 (page 35)
ON GERMINATION IN SEA-WATER
During my experiments on the buoyancy of about 270 British plants, about a fourth of them (including most of those with buoyant seeds or fruits) were subjected to prolonged immersion in sea-water from periods varying from six to thirty-three months. If we except plants like Aster tripolium, Salicornia herbacea, Triglochin maritimum, &c., that live normally in salt marshes, or on the muddy banks of estuaries, only one of the whole number, namely, Ranunculus sceleratus, displayed the capacity of germination in sea-water. Amongst the plants that failed may be mentioned the following that are confined to the sea-beach—Arenaria peploides, Cakile maritima, Convolvulus soldanella, Eryngium maritimum, Euphorbia paralias, Glaucium luteum, and we may here include Crithmum maritimum of the rocky coasts. Of the beach-plants that also grow inland, Silene maritima and Spergularia rubra (excepting the form found on muddy coast flats) likewise failed. Amongst the plants of miscellaneous inland stations that failed were Atriplex patula, Bidens cernua, B. tripartita, Calla palustris, several species of Carex both from dry and wet situations, Convolvulus arvensis, C. sepium, Hydrocotyle vulgaris, Iris pseudacorus, several species of Juncus, Lycopus europæus, Mentha aquatica, Ranunculus repens, Rhinanthus crista galli, several species of Rumex, Scutellaria galericulata, Sparganium ramosum, &c.
In nearly all the plants that failed to germinate in sea-water the capacity of readily germinating in fresh water was displayed. The restraining power of immersion in sea-water was illustrated over and over again in my experiments. During the course of an experiment seeds removed from the sea-water vessel and placed directly in a vessel of fresh water kept beside the other germinated in a few days, whilst those left in the sea-water never germinated, though often kept there for months after. It was also noticeable that a previous sea-water immersion favoured early germination in fresh water. It may be added that most of the experiments were on floating seeds and seedvessels, though germination also occurred in the sunken state.
It was ascertained in the exceptional case of Ranunculus sceleratus, that although germination took place in sea-water, it was only after a prolonged soaking of months had prepared the way. Of a number of its seed-like fruits placed in fresh water and in sea-water in April and kept under the same conditions, those in fresh water germinated freely in a week or two, whilst those in sea-water did not begin to germinate until the following October. Whilst the floating seedlings produced by germination in fresh water grew vigorously and developed roots, those resulting from germination in sea-water and left in the vessel only attained a length of four millimetres in two months, developed no roots, and showed only the first leaf. The sea-water seedlings were pale green, and in their stout fleshy appearance contrasted greatly with the slender fresh-water seedlings.
With regard to the germination in sea-water of the plants of the salt marsh and of the mud-flats of estuaries, the following observations may be made. With Aster tripolium the seeds germinate readily in sea-water even when its density is raised by evaporation to 1·040; and I think that by a carefully graduated series of experiments they could be induced to germinate in brine. The seeds of Salicornia herbacea germinate in sea-water more readily than in fresh water; and the sea-water seedling is much the more vigorous and healthy of the two. I kept the floating seedlings in sea-water for about ten weeks from the date of germination, when they had developed the second joint and were throwing out rootlets. After that, unless placed in salt-mud, they became sickly and died. The floating seedling can evidently disperse the species. I found with Spergularia marina, the maritime form of S. rubra, that seeds of the plants growing on a sandy beach did not germinate in sea-water, only those from plants growing on muddy coast-flats doing so. But the sea-water seedlings, unlike those of Salicornia herbacea, but like those of Ranunculus sceleratus, when left in sea-water did not thrive. The seeds of Triglochin maritimum, as well as those of T. palustre, behave very similarly in sea-water, germinating readily, the liberated seedlings thriving afloat and producing the plumule. The ultimate test of the capacity for germinating in sea-water seems to lie in the behaviour of the seedling when left in the sea-water. Unless it belongs to a characteristic plant of the salt marsh or of the estuary, like Salicornia, it makes but little attempt at growth whilst afloat in sea-water, showing no rootlets, though at times developing the plumule.
The germination of seeds in sea-water also attracted the notice of Darwin; but his results in some respects are scarcely those I should have looked for (Gardener’s Chronicle, May, 1855, and Journ. Linn. Soc., vol. i., p. 130, 1857). Out of the seeds of 87 plants placed in sea-water to test their capacity of germination when afterwards planted, in three cases, those of Tussilago farfara, Convolvulus tricolor, and the garden Orache (Atriplex), the seeds germinated under the water, the freed seedlings, as with the two first named plants, living in the sea-water for some time after. Darwin was evidently himself surprised at these results, and I am quite unable to understand them. In England and in the tropics I have carried on prolonged sea-water experiments on the seeds of at least fifteen species of Convolvulus and Ipomœa (including the beach plants C. soldanella and I. pes capræ) and have never obtained such a result. The seeds will nearly always germinate well in fresh water; but in sea-water the process begins, as indicated by the swollen seed, and then aborts, the embryo dying (see page 83). The seeds of Atriplex patula, though a long time in sea-water in my experiments, made no attempt to germinate there. Neither Prof. Martins, who experimented upon the effects of sea-water immersion on the seeds of nearly 100 plants, including many coast species, nor M. Thuret, who experimented in sea-water on the seeds of 251 plants, the experiments being in some cases prolonged for more than a year, make any reference, as far as I could gather from their writings, to any cases of germination in sea-water. Darwin’s results, however, are always significant in matters of dispersal; and perhaps one of my readers will be able to experiment again on his three plants.
When in Hawaii, I made some observations on the germination of Batis maritima in sea-water, a plan with which I was also familiar in its home in the salt-water pools of the coast of Peru. The mature fruits, on being freed from the parent plant in sea-water, float away, and in from one to two weeks they break down from decay, setting free the seeds. The seeds float in sea-water indefinitely, their buoyancy only terminating with their germination, the first seeds germinating afloat about six weeks after the breaking down of the fruit, whilst the rest continue to float in the sea-water during the next three months, some of them germinating at intervals, and all of them doing so eventually. Strange to say, although the seedlings remained healthy whilst afloat in the sea-water, they made no effort either to separate the cotyledons or to produce a plumule.
NOTE 20 (page 42).
ON THE MAXIMUM HEIGHTS REACHED BY SOME SHORE PLANTS IN THEIR EXTENSION INLAND IN VANUA LEVU, FIJI
Since they occupy the “talasinga” districts described in the following note, these shore plants would be expected to extend as high as those districts extend, namely, to about 1,500 feet above the sea. This indeed represents their limit excepting in one instance; but many fall considerably short of this elevation.
Canavalia obtusifolia, variety, 700 feet, rare. Cassytha filiformis, 950 feet. Cerbera Odollam, 1,200 feet: 2,600 feet in one exceptional case on the slopes of Mbatini. Colubrina asiatica, 400 feet. Cycas circinalis, 1,100 feet. Derris uliginosa, 1,000 feet, rare. Ipomœa pes capræ, 1,300 feet. Morinda citrifolia, 700 feet. Scævola Kœnigii, not common inland, and rarely over 100 feet above the sea; but it may occur miles from the beach, as near Vatu Levoni, where a few stunted plants were growing five miles from the coast. Vitex trifolia, 1,300 feet, usually more or less unifoliolate and procumbent.
Unless otherwise stated all the plants above named are common inland, as also are Premna tahitensis, Tacca pinnatifida, Tephrosia piscatoria, Hibiscus tiliaceus, &c.; but I have made no note of Thespesia populnea occurring far off the beach.
NOTE 21 (pages 42, 43)
ON THE DWARFING OF SHORE PLANTS WHEN EXTENDING INLAND INTO THE “TALASINGA” PLAINS IN VANUA LEVU.
Premna tahitensis, 9 or 10 feet high at the coast, may here be only 3 feet high. Other trees like Morinda citrifolia become also stunted. Cerbera Odollam, a moderate-sized tree at the coast, may in the “talasinga” plains be only 4 to 6 feet high, but it here displays distinct varietal characters. Whilst the shore trees of Cerbera Odollam have broad leaves (length 3 times the breadth) with obtuse points, and short, stout flower-peduncles (1-1/2 - 2 inches), the inland or “talasinga” species has long lanceolate leaves (length 7 or 8 times the breadth), and long, slender flower peduncles (3 inches). However, intermediate forms are common, the broad-leaved coast tree approaching the inland plant and vice versâ.
NOTE 22 (page 43)
THE “TALASINGA” PLAINS OF VANUA LEVU, FIJI
Amongst the most conspicuous features of the north and north-west or lee sides of the large islands of Vanua Levu and Viti Levu are the extensive rolling plains that extend from the sea-border for some miles inland to the foot of the mountains. It is to those of the first-named island that the following remarks strictly apply; but no doubt they will serve equally well for those of the other island. In the first volume on the geology of Vanua Levu, reference is frequently made to this subject, and the reader may profitably look at the remarks there made.
Here the mountain-forests more or less abruptly cease, and we have an undulating region of grass, reeds, and ferns dotted over with Casuarinas, Pandanus trees, Cycads, Acacias, and shrubby growths. Though the list of plants characteristic of these plains is not small, they are not, as a rule, numerous in any one locality, and the general appearance is one of aridity. A dry, crumbling soil, often deeply stained by iron-oxide, is plentifully exposed; and blocks of basic volcanic rocks in all stages of disintegration are strewn over the surface in many localities. Rivers, fed by the heavy rainfall of the forested slopes of the mountains, traverse these regions, but, as a rule, receive no tributaries; and the districts have, in fact, well earned the name given to them by the natives of the “talasinga,” or sun-burnt, lands.
The vegetation, though sparse and scanty in comparison with that of the forests, is sufficiently varied when it comes to be more closely examined. In one locality we may have extensive tracts covered with Gleichenia, Pteris, and other ferns of the bracken habit. In another, tall reeds (Eulalia) and grasses cover large areas. Here, more than one species of Tacca (T. pinnatifida and T. maculata) thrive. There, the Turmeric (Curcuma longa) abounds. Trailing over the soil in one place we notice Ipomœa pes capræ, in another the Yaka (Pachyrrhizus trilobus), and in another the procumbent unifoliolate form of Vitex trifolia. Amongst the shrubs and small trees we observe in different localities the Sama (Commersonia echinata), the Mbulei (Alstonia plumosa—one of the rubber plants), Mussænda frondosa, Melastoma denticulatum, and Nelitris vitiensis, the Nunga-nunga. Dodonæa viscosa, found in similar regions in Australia and New Zealand, abounds in places; and here and there may be seen species of Hibbertia, another Australian genus. Fagræa Berteriana, the Mbua tree, grows abundantly in certain districts, as in the Mbua plains, and Gardenias are at times abundant. One or two characteristic beach-plants have been already mentioned, and amongst others particularly frequent in these plains are Cassytha filiformis, Cerbera Odollam, Morinda citrifolia, and Premna tahitensis.
When these talasinga districts approach the forests, patches of wood occur at intervals, and we observe here the Candle-nut Tree (Aleurites moluccana), the Vunga (Metrosideros polymorpha), and the Thau-kuro (Casuarina nodiflora). Such are some of the botanical features of these districts; but the reader will acquire a sufficiently correct general notion of the floral physiognomy of these regions if he bears in mind their most conspicuous characters, those of an undulating region more or less covered with ferns, tall reeds, and grass, and dotted over, either separately or in clumps, with Casuarinas (C. equisetifolia), Screw-pines (Pandanus odoratissimus), Cycads (C. circinalis), and Acacias (A. Richii, &c.).
However, the peculiar vegetation of these plains often ascends the lower slopes of the mountains, reaching to various elevations. In Vanua Levu it often ceases at 900 or 1,000 feet, but it may only reach to 400 or 500 feet, and, on the other hand, not uncommonly it ascends to as much as 1,500 feet, the greatest elevation recorded by me being 1,600-1,700 feet in the Sealevu district. It extends miles inland, and where conditions are suitable it may reach the heart of the island.
Different explanations have been offered of the origin of the peculiar vegetation of the leeward slopes of these islands. It is, however, a phenomenon that is presented over much of the globe by islands lying in the track of regular winds, the weather, or wet, side being densely wooded, whilst the lee, or dry, side is covered with grass, ferns, and similar vegetation. The predisposing cause must be climatic; and although Mr. Horne’s explanation attributing it to the effect of fires and to a faulty system of native cultivation (pp. 80, 132) may be doubtless true in certain localities, the influences at work here must be the same as are at work in other islands and on continental coasts in other parts of the world.
But for all that it is not easy to give a definite explanation even from a meteorological standpoint. Those who are interested in this subject will recall the desert districts of Australia and the dreary sandy wastes of the coast of Northern Chile and Peru; and they will be cautious in venturing on a definite explanation even with such relatively unimportant examples of the same principle as are exhibited by the islands of Fiji. Dr. Seemann, writing of these “talasinga” plains (p. xii), remarks that “their very aspect is proof that rain falls in only limited quantity,” the mountainous backbone of the islands intercepting, as he holds, much of the rainfall. But the subsequent observations of Mr. Holmes, at Delanasau, in the “talasinga” district on the north-west side of Vanua Levu, have shown that there is by no means a small rainfall in this locality, the average rainfall, for instance, for the seven years ending December, 1877, being 113 inches, which must be quite two-thirds or three-fourths of the fall on the weather side of the island (see p. 215); whilst the average number of days on which rain fell was 156. The true cause would seem to lie in the excessive dryness of the air on the lee side of the islands between the rains, and the whole matter may, perhaps, be one rather for the hygrometer than for the rain-gauge. I have no comparative data bearing on this point; but Mr. Holmes, whose observations as here quoted are from Horne’s Year in Fiji, found that the mean relative humidity for 1875 at 1 P.M. was 63, which is certainly very low for the tropics. I may remark that, as far as personal experience goes, the climate on the lee side of Vanua Levu is much more enervating, much less healthy, and the air is far more “drying” than on the side exposed to the trade-wind.
Geological characters, as I found, explained nothing in this connection, the “talasinga” vegetation sometimes occurring on basaltic areas, at other times on the “soapstone” or calcareous mud-stone, and again on coarser tufaceous rocks. In my volume on the geology of Vanua Levu (p. 57), it is pointed out that the extensive disintegration of the basaltic rocks, that are exposed on these plains in places, affords evidence of the great antiquity of these “talasinga” districts in their present unforested condition. The extent to which these rocks have weathered downward is remarkable. In some places they are decomposed to a depth of ten feet and more. The same inference is to be drawn from the occurrence of fragments of limonite, or bog-iron ore, over these plains, marking as they do original swampy tracts that, with a few exceptions, have long since disappeared. Such deposits indicate that these plains have been for ages in the same condition. ... It may be added that, according to Mr. Lister and Mr. Crosby, the features of the “talasinga” plains occur in the Tongan Group on the leeward sides of the islands of Eua and Vavau.
NOTE 23 (page 43)
SCHIMPER’S GROUPING OF THE INDO-MALAYAN STRAND-FLORA
It is divided into four formations—the Mangrove, the Nipa, the Barringtonia, and the Pes-capræ. The two last make up my Beach-formation, the Barringtonia formation comprising the trees, shrubs, &c., immediately lining the beach, and the Pes capræ including the creepers and bushes of the beach itself. In the Pacific islands it is not always easy to preserve this distinction. The Nipa formation corresponds in some respects with my Intermediate or Transition formation, lying as it does between the mangrove-belts and the woods of the interior; but the swamp-palm (Nipa fruticans) that forms it in the mass is not found in Fiji or, indeed, in the Pacific islands, excepting the Solomon and Caroline Groups.
NOTE 24 (page 44)
GROUPING OF SOME OF THE CHARACTERISTIC PLANTS OF THE STRAND-FLORA OF FIJI
(a) Beach-formation.—Calophyllum inophyllum, Thespesia populnea, Triumfetta procumbens, Carapa moluccensis, Canavalia obtusifolia, Vigna lutea, Pongamia glabra, Sophora tomentosa, Cæsalpinia Bonducella, Acacia laurifolia, Barringtonia speciosa, Terminalia Katappa, Gyrocarpus Jacquini, Pemphis acidula, Morinda citrifolia, Guettarda speciosa, Wedelia biflora, Scævola Kœnigii, Cordia subcordata, Tournefortia argentea, Ipomœa pes capræ, Cassytha filiformis, Hernandia peltata, Pandanus odoratissimus, &c.
(b) Mangrove-formation.—Carapa obovata, Rhizophora mucronata, Rhizophora mangle, Bruguiera Rheedii, Lumnitzera coccinea, Scirpodendron costatum, &c. (See below.)
(c) Intermediate or Transition-formation.—Hibiscus tiliaceus, Heritiera littoralis, Smythea pacifica, Derris uliginosa, Entada scandens, Barringtonia racemosa, Cerbera Odollam, Clerodendron inerme, Vitex trifolia, Excæcaria Agallocha, &c.
N.B.—It is not possible to draw a definite line between the plants of the mangrove swamp and those of the tracts around. Several of the plants placed in the intermediate formation, such as Heritiera littoralis, Entada scandens, Excæcaria Agallocha, &c., are just as much at home amongst the mangroves. In the same way it is often difficult to distinguish between the Beach and the Intermediate formations, and plants like Cerbera Odollam, Hibiscus tiliaceus, and Vitex trifolia belong equally to both.
NOTE 25 (page 47)
THE STRAND-FLORA OF THE TAHITIAN REGION
Drake del Castillo’s Flore de la Polynésie française deals mainly with the Society or Tahitian Islands, but also with the Marquesas, Paumotus, Gambier Islands, and Wallis Island. The last-named, however, lies in Western Polynesia, and is not dealt with in this connection. There is no reason to believe, judging from the general character of the islands and from Cheeseman’s memoir on the Rarotongan flora, that the strand-plants of the islands of the Cook and Austral Groups, which also belong to this region, differ materially from those of the Tahitian islands proper. Rarotonga, however, possesses Entada scandens, not recorded as a growing plant from any other part of East Polynesia, excepting perhaps Mangaia in the same group.
NOTE 26 (page 48)
THE FIJIAN SHORE-PLANTS NOT FOUND IN TAHITI
Although most of these plants, such as Barringtonia racemosa, Clerodendron inerme, Entada scandens, Excæcaria Agallocha, Heritiera littoralis, Smythea pacifica, &c., have fruits that float for months, and could have reached Tahiti as readily as some of the beach-plants that have successfully established themselves, there are a few like Dalbergia monosperma, Derris uliginosa, and Scirpodendron costatum, the fruits of which only float for weeks, and it is possible that they may have been unable to reach there.
NOTE 27 (page 49)
THE INTRUDERS INTO THE BEACH-FLORA FROM THE INLAND PLANTS OF TAHITI
Drake del Castillo mentions several, such as species of Boerhaavia, that could only be occasional intruders; but it is noteworthy that Gardenia tahitensis appears to be a genuine recruit from inland. The xerophilous habit of the Pacific Gardenias and their station, usually near the coast, however, would render this possible.
NOTE 28 (page 52)
THE LITTORAL PLANTS OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS
Column headings:
A: Indigenous. B: By aborigines in ancient times. C: By Europeans soon after discovery. D: Old World. E: New Worlds. F: Both Worlds. G: Large. H: Small. I: Float for months. J: Sink at once or in a few days. K: Attract frugivorous birds.
+---------------------------+---+---+---+---+---+---+---------------------+ | | Origin. | Distri- | Characters of fruit | | | | bution. | or seed. | | +---+---+---+---+---+---+-------+---------+---+ | Species.[5] | |Intro- | | | | Size. |Buoyancy.| | | | |duced. | | | | [6] | | | | | +---+---+ | | +---+---+-----+---+---+ | | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | +---------------------------+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+-----+---+---+ | Acacia Farnesiana |...|...| + |...|...| + |...| + |weeks|...| ? | | Cæsalpinia Bonducella | + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | ... | + |...| | Calophyllum inophyllum |...| + |...| + |...|...| + |...| + |...|...| | Cassytha filiformis | + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | + |...| + | | Colubrina asiatica | + |...|...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...|...| | Cordia subcordata |...| + |...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...|...| |E Cuscuta sandwichiana | + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Cocos nucifera |...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...| + |...|...| |P Gossypium tomentosum | + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| |P Heliotropium anomalum | + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Heliotropium curassavicum| + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | ... | + |...| | Herpestis Monnieria | + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | ... | + |...| | Hibiscus tiliaceus |...| + |...|...|...| + |...| + | + |...|...| | Ipomœa glaberrima | + |...|...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...|...| | Ipomœa pes capræ | + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | + |...|...| |E Jacquemontia sandwicensis| + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| |E Lipochæta integrifolia | + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Morinda citrifolia |...| + |...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...| ? | | Mucuna gigantea | + |...|...| + |...|...| + |...| + |...|...| | Pandanus odoratissimus |...| + |...| + |...|...| + |...| + |...|...| | Portulaca oleracea |...| + |...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Scævola Kœnigii | + |...|...| + |...| + |...| + | + |...| + | | Sesuvium Portulacastrum | + |...|...|...|...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Tacca pinnatifida |...| + |...| + |...| + |...| + | + |...|...| | Tephrosia piscatoria | + |...|...| + |...|...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Terminalia Katappa |...|...| + | + |...|...| + |...| + |...|...| | Thespesia populnea |...| + |...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...|...| | Tribulus cistoides | + |...|...|...| + |...|...| + | ... | + |...| | Vigna lutea | + |...|...|...|...| + |...| + | + |...|...| | Vitex trifolia | + |...|...| + |...|...|...| + | + |...| + | +---------------------------+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+-----+---+---+ Footnote 5:
There are three endemic species here included which are preceded by E. Two species preceded by P are confined to Polynesia. Most of the plants are at present typically littoral, though often also occurring inland.
Footnote 6:
All fruits or seeds, an inch or over in size, that could not have been transported to Hawaii by birds are regarded as large.
NOTE 29 (page 54)
BOTANICAL NOTES ON THE COAST-PLANTS OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS
[The following remarks have been extracted from my journals and represent some of the field-notes of journeys made in the more interesting localities.]
(1) Walk along the Puna Coast, Hawaii, from Punaluu to Hilo (Dec. 26, 1896, to Jan. 6, 1897).—For the first two to three miles to Kamehame Point, the following plants were noticed on the flows of smooth ropy lava that formed the cliff-bound coast—Capparis sandwichiana, Jacquemontia sandwicensis, Ipomœa insularis, Lipochæta lavarum, Portulaca villosa, Tephrosia piscatoria, Tribulus cistoides, Waltheria americana, &c. Beyond this point Scævola Kœnigii was abundant in places on the old lava-flows near the sea, and further on patches of Myoporum sandwicense growing, not as a tree 20 to 30 feet high, as in the mountains, but as a prostrate shrub with fleshy leaves. Vegetation similar to that above described occurred on the surface of the old lava-flows that constituted the cliff-bound sea-border as far as Kapapala Bay. On the sandy beach at Kapapala Bay grew Ipomœa pes capræ, serving as host to Cuscuta sandwichiana. In the vicinity of the house at Keauhou there were a few Coco palms and Pandanus trees, whilst Capparis sandwichiana and Morinda citrifolia were growing on the adjacent lava-fields.
Morinda citrifolia and Tephrosia piscatoria grew on the lava flows between Keauhou and Apua. On the beach at Apua, Ipomœa pes capræ and Scævola Kœnigii were abundant, the last extending a few hundred yards inland on the lava. Further east the inland bush, made up of Cyathodes tameiameiæ, Metrosideros polymorpha, &c., descended to the coast to within a few hundred yards of the sea. In crossing the lava coast plains to Kapa-ahu I observed Morinda citrifolia growing frequently out of the cracks in the bare lava-rock, and an occasional solitary tree of Erythrina monosperma growing also from the fissures.
Before reaching Kapa-ahu we passed the site of an old coast village, named Laepuki, where there were growing from forty to fifty Coco-nut palms, as well as another village, represented by a solitary house, and named Kamomoa, where there were 27 Coco-nut palms and a few Pandanus trees. Kapa-ahu, with its numerous Coco-nut palms, was more like a South Sea coast village than any before seen; and the coast vegetation suddenly acquired a South Pacific character.
At Pulama, for instance, about a mile west of Kapa-ahu, where the ancient lava-flows, fairly vegetated, terminate at the sea in cliffs 20 or 25 feet high, there is a curious and quite unexpected development of a littoral flora such as we should see in the South Pacific. Here, growing on the broken lava surface at the brink of the cliffs and overlooking the sea, thrive Cæsalpinia Bonducella, Cocos nucifera, Ipomœa pes capræ, Ipomœa glaberrima, Morinda citrifolia, Pandanus odoratissimus, Scævola Kœnigii, Sesuvium Portulacastrum, Thespesia populnea, and Vigna lutea. This shore-belt of characteristic littoral plants is backed by vegetation more inland in its character, amongst which Aleurites moluccana, Dodonæa viscosa, Erythrina monosperma, Ipomœa insularis, I. bona nox, Osteomeles anthyllidifolia, &c., are to be observed. Such a shore-belt of typical littoral plants is rarely to be found in the large island of Hawaii; and its usual position at the margin of cliffs, and raised 20 or 25 feet above the sea, is rather suggestive of an uplift in recent times of this part of the coast.
Between Kapa-ahu and Kalapana is a low country occupied mostly by Guavas, and often turfy. At Kalapana, which is a large village situated on a grassy plain by the sea, Coco palms and Pandanus trees abound, and Mucuna gigantea and Cæsalpinia Bonducella are frequent near the coast, whilst Ipomœa pes capræ is common on the beach. Calophyllum inophyllum is planted near the houses. Here Osteomeles anthyllidifolia in its dwarfed form descends to the edge of the cliffs. About half a mile beyond Kalapana is the hamlet of Kaimu, and here among the Coco palms close to the beach I noticed four Loulu palms (Pritchardia Gaudichaudii). Beyond Kaimu the trees and shrubs of the inland wood, Metrosideros polymorpha, Cyathodes tameiameiæ, &c., descend on the spurs of old lava-flows close to the coast; whilst Pandanus and Morinda citrifolia with Mucuna gigantea are common near the sea as far as Kehena, where there are plenty of Coco palms. I approached Opihikao through as fine a Pandanus forest as I have ever seen, the large Bird’s Nest Fern (Asplenium nidus) growing half-way up their trunks, adding picturesqueness to the scene, whilst Mucuna gigantea was a common climber. Beyond Opihikao the inland woods descend to the coast. Thence on to Makuu the coasts are mostly occupied by Pandanus forests, and the lower coast road from Makuu to Hilo traverses a region where these Pandanus trees abound, extending far inland. Scævola Koenigii and Ipomœa pes capræ are common on the coast near Coco-nut Island, Hilo Bay.
It may be added that the agency of the wild goat explains the dispersal of Myoporum sandwicense, Morinda citrifolia, Tephrosia piscatoria, Waltheria americana, &c., over the almost bare surfaces of the lava flows on the Puna coast. Goat droppings were frequent under the patches of Myoporum and Waltheria. In some of them I found the entire seeds of Portulaca oleracea and the small cocci of Euphorbia pilulifera, weeds common in the district.
(2) Coasts of the Kalae Promontory and its Vicinity, Hawaii.— This is the most southerly portion of the group, and it is on the eastern coasts of this district that many of the North American drift logs are embayed and stranded. At Kamilo, to the east of the promontory, there is a long beach of calcareous sand where Heliotropium anomalum, Scævola Kœnigii, and Tribulus cistoides grow in abundance, whilst Sesuvium Portulacastrum thrives on the beach and in brackish pools. Portulaca lutea (Sol.), Ipomœa glaberrima (Boj.), and Jacquemontia sandwicensis also occur. Where the beach-sand has encroached on the adjacent lava surface, the Scævola covers extensive tracts off the beach, and is stunted. I noticed a solitary thicket of Thespesia populnea on the beach.
The actual headland of Kalae is wind-swept and covered with grass, amongst which Portulaca villosa and Sida fallax thrive. By the sea occur Scævola Kœnigii and Ipomœa pes capræ, and there is some Sesbania tomentosa near the point. Waiheiaukini beach is shut in between the lofty arid slopes of the promontory on one side and a modern lava-flow on the other side. Here Scævola Kœnigii grows in quantity, together with Ipomœa pes capræ, Tribulus cistoides, Sida fallax, and Jacquemontia sandwicensis, whilst Cuscuta sandwichiana is abundant, finding its hosts in the first four plants just named.
(3) South Kona Coast, Hawaii.—The coast here, as exemplified by that between Kapua and Hoopuloa, is mostly bare lava. Here and there, a little coral sand collects amongst the lava blocks of the rubbly shore, and it is in such places that Scævola Kœnigii and Ipomœa pes capræ find a home and apparently thrive, whilst Hibiscus tiliaceus and Morinda citrifolia grow behind. I observed Cordia subcordata and one or two specimens of Pritchardia Gaudichaudii by the coast on the south side of Milolii. Around a brackish pool at Kapua I observed Heliotropium curassavicum, and Acacia Farnesiana was to be seen growing on the beach at Okoe. On the lava coast between Hoopuloa and Papa, two miles to the north, Tephrosia piscatoria was very abundant.
(4) North Kona Coast, Hawaii.—I examined the coast between Kailua and Kiholo. White beaches are common south of Keahole Point, the coast further north being usually lava-bound with sandy beaches here and there. Heliotropium anomalum, Ipomœa pes capræ, and Sesuvium Portulacastrum are the commonest beach plants on this coast. Scævola Kœnigii is also abundant in places, whilst Tribulus cistoides and Morinda citrifolia are also fairly common on the beaches. The Morinda also grows on the adjacent lava flats; but on both sand and rock it is evidently usually self-sown, since seedlings are to be seen near the older plants. Heliotropium curassavicum is to be seen here and there on the sand all along the coast, but nearly always associated with H. anomalum. Jacquemontia sandwicensis occurs occasionally on the beach; and Cuscuta sandwichiana is abundant in places, growing generally on Ipomœa pes capræ, but sometimes on Scævola Kœnigii. Brackish water ponds are common on the coast inside the beaches, Ruppia maritima flourishing in the water, with Sesuvium Portulacastrum growing at the edges. Sometimes Hala trees (Pandanus odoratissimus) fringe the borders of the pools. I noticed Pritchardia Gaudichaudii on the coast at Kiholo, and I learned that Cordia subcordata was once common here as on other parts of the Kona coast; but it has died out as in most other localities.
(5) Kohala Coast, Hawaii.—Several littoral plants are scantily represented on the beach of black sand at the mouth of the Waimanu valley, especially Ipomœa pes capræ, Morinda citrifolia, Pandanus odoratissimus, and Scævola Kœnigii. The Pandanus covers the adjacent precipitous slopes up to a height of several hundred feet above the sea. Ipomœa pes capræ is abundant on the sand dunes backing the beach at Waipio. I observed Naias marina in the Waipio River just inside the mouth. No one seems to have recorded the plant from the group since Chamisso found it in Oahu.
(6) Hamakua Coast, Hawaii.—Not many opportunities presented themselves on this cliff-bound coast of finding littoral plants. At the mouth of a gulch between Ookala and Laupahoehoe I found growing at the coast Vitex trifolia (var. unifoliolata) in quantity, together with Morinda citrifolia, Scævola Kœnigii, and Pandanus odoratissimus, the last-named clothing the hill-slopes overlooking the sea.
(7) The Coasts of Oahu.—The littoral vegetation of the south-east portion of the island from Diamond Head round to Waimanalo is, as a rule, scanty. Ipomœa pes capræ and Tribulus cistoides prevail to Koko Head, and on the rubbly coast between that headland and Makapuu Point occur Tephrosia piscatoria, different species of Lipochæta, &c. Between Makapuu Point and Waimanalo, Scævola Kœnigii and Vitex trifolia (var. unifoliolata) are fairly abundant, the former growing on the rocky slope at the base of the cliffs, and raised perhaps some 20 feet above the sea. Along the whole east coast of the island the littoral vegetation is rarely well represented. However, Ipomœa pes capræ is common everywhere, whilst Scævola Kœnigii occurs frequently, and here and there a few plants of Morinda citrifolia are seen on the beach, while thickets of Hibiscus tiliaceus mark in some localities the mouths of streams.
On the north coast of Oahu, as on the Waialua and Waimea beaches, the one-leaved variety of Vitex trifolia is common, together with Ipomœa pes capræ and Euphorbia cordata; whilst Acacia Farnesiana is frequent on the Waialua beach, its pods being much appreciated by the cattle. Occasionally, as by the bridge at Waimea, Colubrina asiatica and Thespesia populnea are to be noticed.
Shore vegetation is a little better represented on the beaches at and near Kaena Point, the north-west corner of the island. Here on the sand we find often in abundance Heliotropium anomalum, the same variety of Vitex trifolia, Scævola Kœnigii, and Ipomœa pes capræ; whilst on the rocks bordering the beach occur Gossypium tomentosum, Jacquemontia sandwicensis, Tribulus cistoides, Vigna lutea, and more than one species of Lipochæta, the last being derivatives from the inland flora.
On the west coast of the island true shore-plants play an inconspicuous part. Ipomœa pes capræ is common on the beaches, and such plants as Acacia Farnesiana, Jacquemontia sandwicensis, Gossypium tomentosum, and Tribulus cistoides immediately border the beach. Ipomœa tuberculata is a frequent intruder as well as the recently introduced Algaroba tree (Prosopis dulcis). Acacia Farnesiana also extends inland, covering entire large areas and forming in the Waianae valley extensive thickets impenetrable for the cattle. It occupies great districts near the coast in different parts of Oahu, and with Hibiscus tiliaceus is to be found far inland. The cattle are active dispersers of its seeds. (See Note 30.)
True beach plants are infrequent at the mouth of Pearl Harbour, although the coast is well suited for them. Here I found Heliotropium anomalum, H. curassavicum, Jacquemontia sandwicensis, Lipochæta integrifolia (a true beach plant), Herpestis Monnieria, &c. Batis maritima occurs in one or two localities around Oahu, but it is, according to Hillebrand, of recent introduction.
NOTE 30 (page 58)
THE BEACH-DRIFT OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS
It was pointed out by Dole long ago in one of the Hawaiian Club Papers (1868) that the existing currents bring to this archipelago only huge pine logs from Oregon, but no tropical fruits; and Hillebrand (p. xiv.) refers to the driftwood of pine logs from the north-west coast of America, stranded on the shores of these islands. This drift seems to collect in quantity in particular localities, as on the south-east coast of Hawaii between Honuapo and the Kalae promontory (especially on the Kamilo beach near Kaluwalu) and on the east coast of Oahu; and probably there are other favourable localities for catching the drift on the northern shores of Maui and Molokai.
It was on the south-east coast of Hawaii (on the beach at Kamilo and on the eastern side of the Kalae promontory) that this drift came particularly under my notice. Here the logs are stranded in abundance, in sufficient quantity, in fact, to build a town, and they were employed for building purposes by the manager of the neighbouring sugar-cane plantation. Several of the logs are of huge size, as much as 4 feet in diameter; and they are known locally as “white cedar” and “red cedar,” and characterised as Oregon timber. Some of them are extensively burrowed by the “teredo” and other boring mollusks. Others recently stranded are covered with barnacles (Lepadidæ), whilst others that have lain long on the beach are bare. I have seen these logs occasionally washed up at Punaluu and at different places on the lava-bound Puna coast. They apparently first strike the Puna coast, and are drifted along until they become embayed near the Kalae promontory, and ultimately stranded. Mingled with them on the beaches Pandanus trunks occur in number; they evidently hail from those parts of the Puna coast where Pandanus forests prevail, and thus they indicate the direction of the drift on the coast of this island. In places there was a considerable amount of small vegetable débris, sometimes partially concealed by the sand, and containing seeds and fruits in fair quantity.
The following seeds and fruits were collected:—
Pandanus drupes, common; most of them fresh-looking, but a few much worn. Thespesia populnea, a few seeds. Ipomœa pes capræ, seeds, fair numbers. Ipomœa bona nox, seeds, a few. Ipomœa glaberrima, seeds, a few. Argyreia tiliæfolia, fruits and seeds, a few. Strongylodon lucidum, seeds, a few. Cæsalpinia Bonducella, a single seed. Vigna lutea, seeds, a few. Calophyllum inophyllum, a few fruits. Ricinus communis, a few, the seeds either free or in the cocci, and often empty or decaying. Aleurites moluccana, seeds, common, none sound, either empty or containing a rotten kernel: also a single fruit. One or two seeds not identified.
There was seemingly a total absence of the fruits or seeds of any littoral plant not found in these islands, such as I was familiar with in the South Pacific. In the mass this seed-drift could have been derived from the neighbouring coasts of the island. This is especially indicated in the cases of the fruits and seeds of Aleurites moluccana, Ricinus communis, and Argyreia tiliæfolia. The sound seeds of Aleurites do not float, the buoyant seeds being always empty, or nearly so; and the presence of the seeds in beach-drift, as explained on page 419, is due partly to the buoyancy of the empty seed and partly to the decay of the stranded fruit, the fruits being able to float for a week or two. So, also, the seeds of Ricinus, whether free or inclosed in the coccus, do not, when sound, float longer than a week or ten days. The capsules of the Argyreia can float two or three weeks, whilst the seeds vary in their behaviour, as observed on page 20. I noticed in places where the vegetable débris was heaped up and exposed to the sun’s heat, that some of the Ipomœa seeds were germinating. It is to be remarked that horse-dung and goat-dung are always common in the beach-drift of these islands. Seeds are sometimes to be seen in the stranded material; and it was evident that the droppings of these animals can float for some weeks before breaking down.... I may add that large sponges, apparently of no value, are thrown up in quantities on the east side of the Kalae promontory.
Excepting the pine logs, the only things coming under my notice in this beach-drift that could be characterised without hesitation as non-Hawaiian, were two well-worn pieces of acid pumice, less than an inch in size. One of them was incrusted partially by the tubes of annelids, and both of them had evidently been drifting about in the Pacific for a long period, perhaps for years. They were such as occur in abundance on the beaches of the South Pacific, and, in fact, on all the shores of the Pacific Ocean, both temperate and tropical. Although I carefully searched the stranded drift of many beaches in this group, no other specimens of drift pumice were found.
On different parts of Oahu the beach-drift was always made up of materials derived from the vegetation of the coast adjacent. Of most frequent occurrence were the seeds of Ipomœa pes capræ and Vigna lutea, and the fruits of Scævola Kœnigii, Vitex trifolia, and Pandanus odoratissimus. In addition, the empty seeds of Aleurites moluccana were numerous, and there were occasional seeds of Thespesia populnea, Colubrina asiatica, and Mucuna gigantea. On one beach there were a number of fruits of Terminalia Katappa, showing but little signs of ocean travel, and evidently derived from trees in the vicinity. This tree was introduced by Europeans; but it is not unlikely that in a generation or two it will become, without man’s aid, one of the characteristic beach trees of Oahu. It may be remarked that the pods of Acacia Farnesiana, a shrub now growing abundantly in Oahu near the sea, are washed up in great quantities on the beaches of the west coast of this island, and the seeds are to be seen germinating in numbers on the beach, the seedlings striking into the sand. The pods float unharmed in sea-water for four or five weeks, but the seeds, when freed, sink.
Although the above evidence gives no indication of tropical drift of non-Hawaiian origin on the beaches, it is probable, for reasons adduced in Chapter VIII., that, in the winter, drift may be brought from tropical America.
NOTE 31 (page 59)
THE INLAND EXTENSION OF THE SHORE-PLANTS OF HAWAII
Cæsalpinia Bonducella.—According to Hillebrand, this plant, so characteristic of the littoral floras of tropical regions, grows “in gulches of the lower plains on all the islands,” no reference being made to its occurrence on the beaches. It is very rarely to be seen on the beaches of the large island of Hawaii; but it is to be found on the lava-bound coasts, and from there it extends inland usually on old lava-flows for five or six miles, and reaches sometimes considerable elevations. In one locality I found it at 2,000 feet above the sea (see page 188).
Cassytha filiformis.—Though a typical shore-plant in Fiji and other tropical localities, it is rarely so in these islands. Hillebrand says nothing of its station. It grows well in the lower open wooded regions, and is frequently found amongst the blocks of old lava-flows near the coast.
Cuscuta sandwichiana.—Unlike its fellow parasite Cassytha filiformis, this species of Cuscuta, which is confined to this group, never came under my notice away from the beach; and Hillebrand speaks of finding it only at the coast (see page 366).
Ipomœa pes capræ, as I observed it in the islands of Hawaii and Oahu, is confined to the beach or to neighbouring sand-dunes. Hillebrand makes no reference to its occurrence inland. This species in these islands offers thus a great contrast to its behaviour in Fiji.
Scævola Kœnigii.—Whilst most at home on the sandy beaches, this plant is also frequently met with in the island of Hawaii on scantily vegetated lava-flows near the coast; but I never noticed it more than a few hundred yards from the sea.
Tephrosia piscatoria.—Though it may occur on the beach, it is generally found as described by Hillebrand on the rocky or rubbly ground at the back of the beach, as well as further inland. It is common on the old lava-fields of the island of Hawaii near the coast; and, according to the natives, its seeds are disseminated by the wild goats that frequent these localities.
Tribulus cistoides.—Hillebrand observes that this plant is found along the sea-shore and on the lower plains. I found it most frequently on the beaches and on the old lava-flows near the sea.
Vitex trifolia, var. unifoliolata.—It is confined, as Hillebrand remarks, to the beaches. Neither in Oahu nor in Hawaii did I ever find it straying inland, which is the more remarkable since this variety, or one closely similar to it, is one of the most characteristic inland plants of the Fijian strand-flora.
Vigna lutea.—This plant was found by me growing on the beaches and in their vicinity. Hillebrand merely speaks of it as “growing at short distances from the shore.”
Some of the trees, usually littoral in their station in the tropical Pacific, which are regarded as having been introduced in early times into the Hawaiian group by the Aborigines (see Chapter VII.), behave, nevertheless, quite like indigenous plants in the inland regions and in the lower levels. This is true, for instance, of Hibiscus tiliaceus and Pandanus odoratissimus, the last-named forming forests at the sea-board extending in places far up the mountain slopes. The same, however, may be said of other plants known to have been introduced since the discovery of the islands, as in the cases of Cactus Tuna and of Ricinus communis; and it also applies to Aleurites moluccana, the Candle-nut Tree, which, although it could only have been introduced by the Aborigines, now forms forests on the lower slopes of the mountains.
NOTE 32 (pages 19, 112, 165)
THE FIJIAN SPECIES OF PREMNA
I was much interested in the small trees and shrubs of this genus in Fiji, more especially on account of the relation between the shore and inland species. This is an Old World genus containing some eighty species mainly characteristic of tropical Asia and Malaya, and represented in the South Pacific archipelagoes by two species, one Premna taitensis or tahitensis, spread over the region and very near P. integrifolia, an Asiatic species; the other Premna serratifolia, an Asiatic plant found in Fiji, the Marquesas, and other groups. Without endeavouring to give a precise value to the Fijian plants, I will merely describe the prevailing forms, which are, however, connected by intermediate varieties. These trees, I may add, are known by the same name in the various Pacific groups, “Avaro” or “Avalo” in Tahiti, “Alo-alo” in Samoa, “Yaro” and “Yaro-yaro” in Fiji.
The Fijian plants may be thus described.... (a) Premna serratifolia, an inland tree, growing in open woods and on the outskirts of the forest, 25 to 30 feet high, more or less hairy, leaves coarsely serrated with long tapering points, putamen prominently tuberculated and thick-walled.
(b) Premna taitensis or P. integrifolia, a low straggling coast tree or shrub of the beaches, the coral islets, the swampy borders of the estuaries, and the inland talasinga plains, its usual height being eight to ten feet, except in the inland plains, where it is dwarfed, and three to five feet high. It is more or less glabrous, the leaves being typically entire with obtuse or retuse and mucronate apices. The putamen is thin-walled and relatively smooth. (c) Intermediate forms found generally in the inland plains or talasinga regions.
On the Modes of Dispersal.—Speaking generally, the small drupes of both species float at first, but the soft parts are soon removed by decay, and the stone is freed. In the case of the coast species, P. taitensis, the stones float indefinitely and are often found afloat in rivers. In the case of the inland tree, P. serratifolia, most of the stones sink at once, whilst the others sink in a few days. It is probable that currents are one of the effective agencies in distributing the coast species, but this could not apply to the inland tree. The fruits of both the inland and the coast species would attract birds, and the stones would resist injury in their crops. This is the agency advocated by Prof. Schimper for the shore species, P. integrifolia, of Indo-Malaya; and fruits referred with a query to this genus were found in the collection of seeds and fruits obtained by me from the crops of pigeons in the Solomon Islands (Bot. Chall. Exped., Introd. p. 46, part IV. p. 312).
On the Cause of the Buoyancy of the Stone or Putamen of the Coast Species.—This is primarily connected with the empty seed-cavities, the four-celled stone usually developing only one seed, the other cavities being empty. This inference was established by the dissection of a large number of stones, but it will be seen from the table below that one-seeded stones are also frequent in the case of the inland tree (P. serratifolia), where they as a rule sink. With either species the substance of the stone has no floating power, but with the shore species, on account of the thin-walled stone, the empty seed-cavities cause it to be specifically lighter than water whilst with the inland species the walls of the stone are so thick that the empty spaces of the unfilled seed-cavities do not effect the same result. It may be remarked that when the coast species grows in the inland plains the buoyancy of the stone is preserved.
+-----------------------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+ | | One-seeded | Two-seeded |Three-seeded | | | stones. | stones. |stones. | +-----------------------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+ |Inland tree (P. serratifolia)| 73 per cent.| 23 per cent.| 4 per cent. | |Coast tree (P. taitensis) | 92 per cent.| 8 per cent.| — | +-----------------------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
NOTE 33 (page 63)
DE CANDOLLE’S LIST OF PLANTS DISPERSED EXCLUSIVELY BY CURRENTS
Drepanocarpus lunatus; Ecastaphyllum Brownei; Mucuna urens, D.C.; Tephrosia piscatoria; Hibiscus tiliaceus; Rhizophora mangle; Guilandina Bonduc, Linn.; Ipomœa pes capræ; Canavalia obtusifolia.
I have experimented on the buoyancy of the fruits and seeds of all these plants excepting the two first named. In five species the seeds float in sea-water unharmed for several months. With Rhizophora it is the floating seedling that disperses the plant. Neither the pods nor the seeds of Tephrosia piscatoria are suited for dispersal by the currents.
NOTE 34 (page 64)
THE LITTORAL PLANTS OF THE EASTERNMOST POLYNESIAN ISLANDS
Except in the case of Hernandia peltata my authority here is the Botany of the “Challenger” Expedition. Mr. J. H. Maiden gives some further details of the flora of Pitcairn Island in a more recent paper (Austral. Assoc. Rep., Melbourne, 1901, vol. 8), and Hernandia peltata is included in his list.
NOTE 35 (page 68)
DISTRIBUTION OF THE LITTORAL PLANTS WITH BUOYANT SEEDS OR FRUITS THAT ARE FOUND IN THE FIJIAN, TONGAN, SAMOAN, TAHITIAN, AND HAWAIIAN GROUPS
This list probably contains nearly all the species of the Polynesian region, but it is not implied that these plants have been recorded from all the groups (vide infra).
(a) Species found only in the Old World.—Calophyllum inophyllum, Hibiscus diversifolius, Thespesia populnea, Heritiera littoralis, Kleinhovia hospita, Carapa moluccensis, C. obovata, Smythea pacifica, Colubrina asiatica, Mucuna gigantea, Erythrina indica, Strongylodon lucidum, Dalbergia monosperma, Pongamia glabra, Inocarpus edulis, Derris uliginosa, Afzelia bijuga, Barringtonia racemosa, B. speciosa, Rhizophora mucronata, Bruguiera Rheedii, Terminalia Katappa, T. littoralis, Lumnitzera coccinea, Pemphis acidula, Morinda citrifolia, Guettarda speciosa, Wedelia biflora, Scævola Kœnigii, Cerbera Odollam, Ochrosia parviflora, Cordia subcordata, Tournefortia argentea, Ipomœa glaberrima, I. grandiflora, I. peltata, Aniseia uniflora, Clerodendron inerme, Vitex trifolia, Hernandia peltata, Excæcaria Agallocha, Tacca pinnatifida, Cycas circinalis, Pandanus odoratissimus, Scirpodendron costatum.
(b) Species occurring in both the Old and New Worlds.—Hibiscus tiliaceus, Suriana maritima, Ximenia americana, Dodonæa viscosa, Canavalia obtusifolia, C. ensiformis, Vigna lutea, Sophora tomentosa, Cæsalpinia Bonduc, C. Bonducella, Entada scandens, Gyrocarpus Jacquini, Luffa insularum, Ipomœa pes capræ, Cassytha filiformis, Cocos nucifera.
(c) _Species occurring in America to the exclusion of the Old World._—Dioclea violacea, Mucuna urens, Rhizophora mangle.
(d) Species found only in Polynesia.—Canavalia sericea, Mucuna platyphylla(?), Cynometra grandiflora, Serianthes myriadenia, Parinarium laurinum(?), Premna tahitensis.
Remarks.—Of these seventy plants there is not one that has not come within the scope of my observations and experiments. The West Coast of Africa is included in the American region for reasons given in Chapter VIII. For the other authorities on the buoyancy of these seeds and fruits reference should be made to the list given under Note 2 and to other parts of this work. About one or two of the plants, like Ipomœa peltata, one scarcely knows whether they are most characteristic of the coast-flora or of the inland-flora.
NOTE 36 (page 72)
HAWAIIAN PLANTS WITH BUOYANT SEEDS AND FRUITS KNOWN TO BE DISPERSED BY THE CURRENTS EITHER EXCLUSIVELY OR, AS IN A FEW SPECIES, WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF FRUGIVOROUS BIRDS
Colubrina asiatica.—Usually regarded as confined to the Old World; but since nearly all the species are American, that continent may be considered as the probable home also of this species. Hillebrand gives it a locality in the West Indies.
Dioclea violacea.—Tropical America.
Mucuna gigantea.—Old World.
Mucuna urens.—America, and extending to the African West Coast, which is to be included in the American region of shore-plants.
Strongylodon lucidum.—Old World.
Vigna lutea.—Old and New Worlds.
Cæsalpinia Bonducella.—Old and New Worlds.
Scævola Kœnigii.—Usually regarded as confined to the Old World, but according to the synonymy accepted by some authors it is also to be ascribed to America. The genus is chiefly Australian, and it is possible that the littoral species may have reached America through the agency of birds, since all the species of the genus possess fruits that would attract frugivorous birds.
Ipomœa glaberrima (Boj.).—Old World.
Ipomœa pes capræ.—Old and New Worlds.
Vitex trifolia.—Old World. The genus is also dispersed by pigeons.
Cassytha filiformis.—Old and New Worlds. Like Scævola the genus is chiefly Australian, and here, also, the fruits of the littoral species are not only dispersed by the currents, but are known to be also disseminated by fruit-pigeons.
It is possible that birds may have taken a predominant part in the dispersal of the species of Scævola, Vitex and Cassytha.
There thus remain nine species for consideration. Of these two are exclusively American, three are found in both the Old and New Worlds and four are usually regarded as exclusively Old World plants, but one of them (Colubrina asiatica) has a fair claim to be regarded as of American origin. Thus it is quite possible that six out of these nine plants were brought to Hawaii from America through the agency of the currents.
NOTE 37 (page 78)
ON VIVIPARY IN THE FRUITS OF BARRINGTONIA RACEMOSA AND CARAPA OBOVATA
As observed by me in the Rewa delta, Fiji, there was no external evidence of such a process in the case of the fruits on the trees; but I did not pay very special attention to the matter, and it will be gathered from Chapter XXX. that the initial stage of germination may show no indication in the appearance of the fruit. More observation is needed for both species. As indicated in Note 50, the structure of the seed of Barringtonia racemosa is suggestive of a lost viviparous habit. With regard to Carapa, Schimper (p. 43) remarks that he has never observed vivipary; but Miquel, in his Flora Indiæ Bataviæ, particularly speaks of the seeds germinating in the capsule. I think this is very likely, and that perhaps even the rupture of the capsule may be partly due to this cause.
NOTE 38 (page 78)
ON THE TEMPERATURE AND DENSITY OF THE SURFACE-WATER OF THE ESTUARIES OF THE REWA RIVER IN FIJI, AND OF THE GUAYAQUIL RIVER IN ECUADOR
(a) The Rewa Estuary.—My observations were made mostly in the warm, wet seasons, from October to January, 1897-99, and generally in the vicinity of the Roman Catholic Mission. The density varied usually between 1·000 and 1·010, the water being quite fresh after heavy rains inland. Though the density was usually greatest at high water, this was by no means always the case. The temperature of the water in dry weather varied from 79° to 84° F. With the river in flood after heavy rains it fell to 75° and 76°. As a rule, the fresher the water the lower the temperature, but this was not invariable. There was evidence of super-heating in the estuary, the water there having sometimes a temperature of 82° or 83°, when the water higher up the river as far as Viria was two or three degrees cooler, the sea-temperature being 79° to 80°. The average temperature of the water of the estuary during the season would be 80 to 81°.
(b) The Estuary of the Rio Guayas, also known, as the Guayaquil River.—My observations were made in the last week of February and in the first half of March, 1904. Whilst the sea-temperature a few miles off the Ecuador coast varied from 76° to 80° F., the water of the estuary from the mouth up to Guayaquil ranged from 79° to 86°, whilst rather higher up the river the temperature was about 79° or 80°. The super-heating of the estuary is thus directly indicated. It was well marked in the lower part of the estuary during one of my ascents of the river.
_Surface-temperatures of estuary of the Guayaquil River, March 13, 1904, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; tide running up._
Sea-temperature 5-10 miles off the mouth 79·7 Estuary-temperature at the mouth, off Puna 82·7 Estuary-temperature 3 miles above Puna 84·4 Estuary-temperature 15 miles above Puna 86·5 Estuary-temperature 25 miles above Puna 82·5 Estuary-temperature off Guayaquil 81·8
The water of the estuary was, as a rule, cooler with the ebbing tide.
The density of the estuary-water at the mouth opposite Puna during the two days the ship was in quarantine ranged from 1·004 to 1·016, being generally about 1·010, and salter with the up-going tide. Off Guayaquil the water during the ebbing tide was quite fresh and, from an Ecuadorian standpoint only, potable, whilst at high water it may be a little brackish. The sea-water has much freer access to the channels in the mangrove-district at the back of the city of Guayaquil, where at high water I found the density to be 1·014.
Off Puna, on Feb. 25, I noticed that the surface-current which was running down the stream was from one to two fathoms deep, whilst below it was a strong current running up the river which carried my thermometer up against the surface-current.
NOTE 39 (page 82)
ON THE PACIFIC SPECIES OF STRONGYLODON
Hillebrand in his Hawaiian Flora, following Seemann, regards S. lucidum, Seem., and S. ruber, Vogel, as one species found in Fiji, Hawaii, and Tahiti, and by the former placed also in Ceylon. Hillebrand and Seemann are followed by Drake del Castillo as regards the Tahitian species. Taubert, in his monograph on the Leguminosæ (Engler’s Pflanz. Fam., Teil 3, Abth. 3, 1894), takes the same view of the Polynesian species and of its wide distribution. However, in the Genera Plantarum and in the Index Kewensis, the Asiatic and Polynesian species have been always kept apart. The two species of the genus mentioned in the first work are increased to five in the Index Kewensis, viz., one in Fiji (S. lucidum), one in Hawaii (S. ruber), two in Madagascar, and one in the Philippines.
NOTE 40 (page 88)
PRECAUTIONS IN TESTING SEED-BUOYANCY
Many seeds and fruits require a few hours’ soaking before they sink; and when small they will rest a long time on the surface of still water, but a touch with the finger or a drop of water will send them to the bottom. A few will float a few days (3 or 4) before sinking; but such are included in the non-buoyant group. Only in rare cases does prolonged drying increase the period of flotation by more than a few days, examples being given at the end of the Table of Buoyancy results under Note 10. Adherent air-bubbles, a common cause of adventitious buoyancy, must always be removed.
NOTE 41 (page 91)
THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OF CONVOLVULUS SOLDANELLA IN FRESH WATER AND SEA-WATER COMPARED
The experiments were commenced at the close of September, 1894, and covered six months. At the end of this period in Mr. Millett’s experiment, 56 per cent. of the seeds were afloat in fresh water, and 62 per cent. in sea-water; whilst in my own experiment 72 per cent. floated in fresh water, and 65 per cent. in sea-water. I was indebted to Mr. Millett’s courtesy for the seeds.
NOTE 42 (page 96)
ON SECULAR CHANGES IN SEA-DENSITY
Exact data bearing on this subject are not at my disposal; but it would seem that geologists have formed conflicting conclusions from similar premises. There is the view that the composition of the ocean water was very different in early geological periods (Encycl. Brit., x., 221); but I should imagine that the character of the crustacean fauna of those seas would negative any great divergence from the present condition. Suess implies that the ancient seas carried the same minerals in solution that they do now, and it is to be inferred in a similar proportion (E. de Margerie’s French edition of Das Antlitz der Erde, ii., 343 and 345).
NOTE 43 (page 102)
ON THE MUCOSITY OF SMALL SEEDS AND SEED-LIKE FRUITS WHEN WET
I paid considerable attention to this subject from the standpoint of dispersal some years ago, and published most of the results in Science Gossip for Sept., 1894. This peculiar quality of seeds had been noticed by Dr. Kerner in his Pflanzenleben (vol. i., 1887-91), and was regarded as illustrating a mode of dispersal of seeds by adherence. As a rule, such seeds when placed in water become coated with mucus in a few minutes, or within an hour, and when allowed to dry on feathers they adhere as firmly as if gummed. I found that this quality is not affected by prolonged drying, as in the cases of Nepeta glechoma and Salvia verbenaca, where it was exhibited to the same degree after the seed-like fruits had been kept from one to three years. I especially tested about 110 British plants that were likely to display this quality, and found that about a dozen exhibited it in a marked degree, and if to these we add those plants with seeds that display it to a limited extent so that they merely become adhesive when wetted, the total would be nearly twenty. It will be noticed from the list subjoined that the plants showing marked mucosity belong to twenty genera and to ten families, the Labiatæ and Cruciferæ predominating. Although in some genera, like Plantago, there is reason to suppose that the seeds of all the species would behave in this fashion, it would be wrong to infer that this is usually the case, six genera being indicated below to which such a rule would not apply, and doubtless the number could be extended. These plants in England mostly occur at the roadside, on waste ground, and in dry meadows. It may be added that although in most cases the seeds appear in water to emit mucus, “exuded mucilage” being the expression used in the English edition of Kerner’s work, in some instances, as with Helianthemum vulgare, there appears to be a dissolving process affecting the outer seed-covering.
I. _Plants with Seeds or Seed-like Fruits that emit Mucus to a Marked Degree when placed in Water._
Arabis thaliana, G. Cruciferæ. Camelina sativa, K. Cruciferæ. Teesdalia, K. Cruciferæ. Capsella bursa-pastoris, G. Cruciferæ. Lepidium sativum, D. Cruciferæ. Helianthemum vulgare, G. Cistaceæ. * Viola tricolor (Field Pansy), G Violaceæ. Linum usitatissimum, D. Linaceæ. Linum, K. Linaceæ. * Matricaria chamomilla, K. G. Compositæ. * Senecio vulgaris, G. B. Compositæ. Collomia, K. Polemoniaceæ. Gilia, K. Polemoniaceæ. * Veronica beccabunga, S. Scrophulariaceæ. Ocimum basilicum, K. Labiatæ. Salvia verbenaca, G., &c. Labiatæ. Salvia, K. B. Labiatæ. * Nepeta glechoma, G. Labiatæ. * Dracocephalum, K. Labiatæ. Prunella vulgaris, G. Labiatæ. Plantago, K. Plantagineæ. Plantago major, lanceolata, maritima, G. Plantagineæ. Luzula campestris. G. Juncaceæ.
Explanation of Abbreviations.—The capital letter following the name indicates my authority, which is not necessarily the oldest in each case: B = Beal; D = Darwin; G = Guppy; K = Kerner; S = Scott Elliot. The respective works quoted will be found at the end of this volume. The papers of Darwin quoted will be found in Journ. Linn. Soc., “Botany,” vol. i., 1857, and in the Gardeners Chronicle for 1855.
The asterisk is placed before those genera of which other species examined by me exhibited no mucosity; these species are Arabis hirsuta, Viola canina, V. palustris, Matricaria inodora, Senecio aquaticus, Veronica agrestis, V. arvensis, Nepeta cataria, Dracocephalum canariensis.
II. _Plants with Seeds or Seed-like Fruits which in my Experiments only exhibited Mucosity in a Slight Degree, becoming merely “Sticky” or Adhesive when placed in Water._
Arabis albida, Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, Lamium purpureum (occasionally), Thymus sp., Juncus bufonius, J. communis, J. glaucus, J. squarrosus.
III. _Plants with Seeds or Small Fruits that exhibit Adhesiveness in the Dry State and are apt to stick to one’s fingers._
Adenostemma viscosum, Lycopus europæus, Piper Macgillivrayi, &c. One may include here also Lagenophora (see page 276) as well as the familiar instances of Pisonia (page 347) and Boerhaavia (page 356).
NOTE 44 (page 121)
ON THE EFFECTS OF INLAND EXTENSION ON THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OR FRUITS OF LITTORAL PLANTS
When in Fiji I experimented on the buoyancy of the following beach-plants that had extended far into the interior of Vanua Levu, as will be found described in Note 22. Those tested were Cassytha filiformis, Cerbera Odollam, Ipomœa pes capræ, Morinda citrifolia, Premna tahitensis, Scævola Kœnigii, and Tacca pinnatifida. In all but Cerbera Odollam, where I contented myself with establishing that the fruits floated buoyantly in sea-water, the experiments were prolonged for many weeks and often for several months; and in some cases, as with Ipomœa pes capræ, three or four experiments were made on seeds from different inland localities. The result was to establish in all cases that the floating powers were as great with the inland as with the coast plants of the same species; nor could any structural difference of importance be noticed. It should be observed that there is every reason to believe that the “talasinga” plains of Fiji have been occupied by the intruding beach-plants for many ages.
NOTE 45 (page 122)
TABULATED RESULTS OF THE CLASSIFICATION, ACCORDING TO SCHIMPER’S APPLICATION OF THE NATURAL SELECTION THEORY, OF THE BUOYANT SEEDS AND FRUITS OF THE TROPICAL LITTORAL PLANTS ON THE BASIS OF THE STRUCTURAL CHARACTERS CONCERNED IN BUOYANCY
Column headings:
#: Number. %: Per cent. A: Percentage of non-adaptive species. B: Percentage of adaptive species.
+------------------+-----------------------------+---------------+--------+ | | Classification of species. | | | | +-------------------+---------+ Proportion of | Total | | | Non-adaptive. |Adaptive.| non-adaptive | number | | +---------+---------+---------+ and adaptive | of | | Region. | First | Second | Third | species. | species| | | group. | group. | group. | | dealt | | +----+----+----+----+----+----+-------+-------+ with. | | | # | % | # | % | # | % | A | B | | +------------------+----+----+----+----+----+----+-------+-------+--------+ |Pacific Islands | 27 | 40 | 10 | 15 | 30 | 45 | 55 | 45 | 67 | | | | | | | | | | | | |Pacific Islands, | | | | | | | | | | |tropical America, | | | | | | | | | | |and Indo-Malaya | 28 | 35 | 12 | 15 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 50 | 80 | +------------------+----+----+----+----+----+----+-------+-------+--------+
NOTE.—If to the last we add the eight British shore plants, the buoyant fruits of which are described in Chapter XII., three non-adaptive and five adaptive, we get a proportion of adaptive species for temperate and tropical regions of fifty-one per cent. This is probably fairly typical of the world generally; but it must be remembered by the reader that the author regards them all as non-adaptive. In that case, the table can be used for the numerical results of the three groups which are based only on structural characters without reference to any theory.
NOTE 46 (page 124)
ON THE MODES OF DISPERSAL OF THE GENUS BRACKENRIDGEA.
Seed-vessels of this genus found afloat in the New Guinea drift are described by Mr. Hemsley as having two curved cavities crossing each other one containing a seed, the other empty. “This empty cavity,” it is stated “gives the fruit its buoyancy” (Bot. Chall. Exped., iii., 289; plate 54) Dr. Beccari, in the English edition of his Wanderings in Borneo, p. 187, speaks of the closed air-containing cavities in the seed-vessels, or rather “stones,” of this genus as probably giving them buoyancy and thus enabling them to be dispersed by currents. He points out that the fleshy covering of these fruits would also aid their dispersal by birds. The Italian botanist implies that the two Bornean species grow in swamps. The Fijian species, as observed by me in flower in Vanua Levu, grew in the dry talasinga districts bordering the Mathuata coast, the locality where Seemann found the plant. One of the most recent accounts of the genus is given by Van Tieghem in his memoir on the Ochnaceæ in Ann. des. Sci. Nat. Bot., tome 16, 1902. According to him there are nine species, all from Malaya and New Guinea, with the exception of one in Fiji. Previous authors have also referred to Queensland and Zanzibar species. However, all the species have a limited distribution, a fact which plainly assigns to birds the principal share in the dispersal of the genus.
NOTE 47 (page 125)
ON THE TRANSPORT OF GOURDS BY CURRENTS
Small calabashes or bottle-gourds are not uncommonly to be found floating in the Fijian estuaries and stranded on the beaches; and I have also found them in the sea off the coasts. They are usually more or less globular, 3 or 4 inches across, and are evidently able to float for very long periods and to carry the seeds unharmed. Most of those I examined from the drift were dry inside and contained the seeds dried together into a loose ball about an inch in size. The seeds are not those figured in Gaertner’s De Fructibus et Seminibus, as belonging to Lagenaria vulgaris, and more resemble those of Cucurbita, but are non-buoyant. One of these gourds, picked up by me in the sea in Fiji, was placed in sea-water, and two months later was still floating buoyantly. After being then kept dry for seven months, it was broken open; and ten of the seeds were put in soil, two of them germinating in a few days.
In Ecuador gourds similar in size and shape were frequently observed by me floating in the drift of the Guayaquil River and stranded on the sea-beaches. The seeds are similarly caked together in a loose mass in the cavity of the fruit. Their characters indicate that they belong to another species of gourd; and they differ also from the Fijian seeds in their buoyancy, some of them in my experiments floating two months and afterwards germinating.
It has been known since the days of Ström and Gunnerus, two Norwegian naturalists of the 17th century, that gourds and calabashes are from time to time stranded with other Gulf-stream drift on the coasts of Norway. We learn from Sernander that those found are usually worked calabashes; but he alludes to one that was unworked and contained several seeds (see Sernander, p. 119).
It is scarcely likely that a seed-carrying gourd stranded on a beach would be able to establish the plant without the aid of man; but it seems highly probable that gourds have often been introduced into new countries by the currents and that man has afterwards cultivated them. These plants may be contrasted with that remarkable Cucurbit, Luffa insularum, a genuine littoral plant, the seeds of which, and not the fruits, are dispersed in the Pacific by the currents (see page 426).
NOTE 48 (page 126)
ON THE USELESS DISPERSAL BY CURRENTS OF THE FRUITS OF THE OAK (QUERCUS ROBUR) AND OTHER SPECIES OF QUERCUS, AND ALSO OF THE HAZEL (CORYLUS AVELLANA)
The fruits of different species of Quercus are of not infrequent occurrence in the seed-drift both of the temperate and tropical regions, being brought down by the rivers to the sea and then stranded on the neighbouring beaches. They were amongst the drift gathered by Mr. Moseley in the open sea, 70 miles off the New Guinea coast (Bot. Chall. Exped., iv., 294). I found them on the beaches of Keeling Atoll where no oak exists, and on the beaches of the south coast of Java; whilst Prof. Schimper noticed them among the stranded drift of the Java Sea, and Prof. Penzig found them stranded on the shores of Krakatoa. They also came under my notice on the Sicilian beaches and on the Italian coast at Cumæ. Those of Quercus robur are to be found on the English beaches and in the autumn drift of the Thames, but they soon sink and disappear from river-drift. They are referred to by Dr. Sernander as frozen with other floating seeds in the ice of the Scandinavian rivers; but he evidently does not regard them as possessing much independent floating power.
Some years ago the author made a number of experiments on the buoyancy of the acorns of Quercus robur, and he formed the conclusion that when freshly collected not more than 4 to 8 per cent. of mature fruits will float in fresh-water, and not more than about 10 to 12 per cent. in sea-water, but that in either case they all sink in a day or two. Immature acorns float much longer, and it is these that mostly figure in the drift. However, unlike most fruits of little initial buoyancy the mature fruits gain considerable floating power by drying. Of some that had been kept for seven months 20 per cent. floated after four weeks in sea-water and 15 per cent. after 10 weeks.... It may be added that, according to Thuret, the fruits of Quercus ilex have little or no floating power.
The buoyancy of the fruits of Quercus is due entirely to the cavity left by the shrinking of the kernel. I never remember to have found one with a sound seed amongst the drift in England and Sicily; and I should doubt much whether those in the tropical drift retain their germinating powers. But, apart from this, the genus Quercus finds in its own constitution or habit the greatest obstacle in most species to the adoption of a littoral station. However, there are exceptional tendencies displayed by the evergreen oaks; and this is very significant, since in their xerophilous leaves they possess the preliminary qualification for a station near the sea. Quercus ilex, it is well known, shows a partiality for the sea-air, and Q. virens, the “live oak,” flourishes near the sea in the southern states of America, a maritime variety being distinguished by botanists. One of the willow-oaks of America, Q. phellos, which grows in swampy land, also has a beach variety.
The Hazel-tree (Corylus avellana) must be placed in the same category with Quercus. I found the empty nuts commonly amongst the stranded drift of the Sicilian and English beaches. The fruits were also frequently noticed by Dr. Sernander in the Scandinavian sea-drift; but he says nothing of their empty condition. Mr. Darwin remarks, in the Origin of Species, that he found that fresh hazel-nuts sank, but that after drying a long time they floated for ninety days and subsequently germinated. The floating-power is no doubt due to the cavity arising from the shrinking of the kernel, and it is to this cause that Dr. Sernander attributed the slight initial buoyancy observed by him. However, the hazel, like the common oak, lacks the habit that would fit it for a station by the sea, and, whatever capacity its fruits may possess for dispersal by currents, it is quite useless for the spread of the species.
NOTE 49 (page 131)
ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF IPOMŒA PES CAPRÆ, CONVOLVULUS SOLDANELLA, AND CONVOLVULUS SEPIUM
Whilst Ipomœa pes capræ is cosmopolitan in the tropical zones, Convolvulus soldanella is cosmopolitan in both the north and south temperate zones; but, as might be expected, the two species at times meet and their areas overlap. Thus, according to Mr. Cheeseman (Trans. New Zealand Inst., xx., 1887), they meet in the Kermadec Islands, in the South Pacific, in about latitude 30°. From my observations on the coast of Chile it would seem that C. soldanella in its northward extension fails somewhere between Valparaiso and Coquimbo, that is to say, between 33° and 30° S. lat. Gay merely refers to the plant as existing in North Chile, which in his time would include the coast between 33° and 24° S. lat. It intrudes within the “thirties” on the coast of California and is found in Madeira in about 33° N. lat. Ipomœa pes capræ in its turn extends into subtropical regions, being recorded from the Kermadecs, as above noted, and from the Bermudas in 32° N. lat. Owing probably to special physical conditions of the coast, which are referred to in Chapter XXXII., this plant is evidently limited to the tropics on the west coast of South America. It did not come under my notice on the beaches of North Chile, and it is apparently not mentioned by Gay in his work on the Chilian flora.
Convolvulus sepium, the frequent inland associate of the littoral C. soldanella over the temperate regions of the globe, belongs to the same section of the genus (Calystegia). Its extraordinary occurrence by itself in the island of St. Paul, in the Southern Ocean, about fifty yards from the shore (Bot. Chall. Exped., ii., 153, 264), almost suggests that we have here a dimorphic species with a littoral and an inland form; and its existence in the Azores is in this connection very remarkable. It may be here noted that of three plants raised from seeds found in the beach-drift near Palermo two had the foliage of C. sepium and one of C. soldanella. Perhaps one of my readers, in imitation of De Vries with Œnothera, might be able to settle this point by raising some hundreds of seedlings from the seeds of the beach species. It is possible that the relation between these two species of Convolvulus may be in some respects akin to that between Cæsalpinia Bonducella and C. Bonduc, two littoral plants that accompany each other over much of the tropical zone.
The student of dispersal will, however, find some curious gaps in the distribution of Convolvulus soldanella even in the temperate regions; and it will be curious to observe how they affect the distribution of C. sepium. He will have to answer the query of De Candolle:... “Admitting, if one wishes, that the currents have transported this marine species, how comes it that it chances to be in the Pacific and in Europe, without occurring on the east coasts of America and on the east and west coasts of Africa?” (Geographie Botanique, ii., 1056). He will have to explain why some botanists give C. soldanella a habitat in the tropics, as in the Indian region. Schimper, who investigated this point, says that he arrived at no certain result (p. 127). See Notes 13 and 41 and pages 29, 91, for further remarks on these two species of Convolvulus.
NOTE 50 (pages 79, 132)
ON THE STRUCTURE OF THE SEEDS AND FRUITS OF BARRINGTONIA
As regards the fruits and their coverings, the littoral and inland species of Fiji evidently fall into different sections, the first named (B. speciosa and B. racemosa) being distinguished by their outer fibrous husk, to which the buoyancy is due, the last-named (B. edulis and an undescribed species) possessing a hard stone surrounding the seed, and here the fruits sink or float only for limited periods.
The fruits of B. edulis have an outer almost fleshy covering, a little fibrous at the outside, and the hard ligneous “stone,” containing an edible seed, requires a hammer to break it. They float heavily for three or four weeks, whereas those of the littoral species float for many months. In the case of another inland species found by me growing as a small tree 12 feet high on the slopes of Mount Seatura in Vanua Levu at an elevation of 1,000 feet above the sea, the seed was similarly protected by a hard “stone” that could only be broken with an axe, and the fruit was non-buoyant, with thin and perishable outer coats.
This mountain species of Fiji, which I may name Barringtonia seaturæ, has the general habit of B. racemosa, with which the natives persisted in linking it; whilst the fruit and foliage come nearer to those of B. edulis. The leaves are entire, taper at the base, and have a petiole 1 inch long. The fruits are oblong, at least 3 inches in length, and are obscurely angled.
It would appear from Schimper’s description (p. 173) that the fruits of the Malayan Barringtonia excelsa possess both the hard stone-shell of the inland Fijian species and the dry air-bearing fibrous husk of the littoral species. This is of special interest, since the tree is both a coast and an inland species.
The following notes on the structure of the seeds of Barringtonia were made whilst I was drifting about in my canoe in the creeks of the Rewa delta in Fiji; and whatever may be their deficiencies they have the merit of having been written in the home of the plants.... When we cut across a seed like that of B. racemosa or B. speciosa, we observe that the different parts of the embryo are indistinguishable, being united into a homogeneous, firm, fleshy mass. But if we look closely we notice a central fusiform portion marked out from the surrounding parts by a faint line, along which a delicate membrane of vascular tissue has been developed. When “germination” begins, though, as the reader will subsequently perceive, this term is here hardly appropriate, the real nature of this singular structure becomes more apparent, as is indicated in the accompanying figure. The central fusiform portion proves to be the young plant without cotyledons and growing at either end to form the root and the stem. The delicate investing membrane becomes thicker and more apparent as germination proceeds, extending upwards and downwards with the growth of the stem and root and forming a cortical covering in either case. The investing fleshy portion of the seed, which is now separable with the fingers, remains attached to the lower part of the seedling for some time, being evidently a source of nutriment, and gives a bulbous appearance to the young plant. Young bulbous plants of B. racemosa, 1 to 2 feet high, are very common on the edge of Fijian mangrove swamps where the parent tree thrives. The seedlings of B. speciosa have the same appearance, but the outer fleshy part of the bulb is not so thick.
[To face page 574.
Diagrams illustrating the structure of the growing seeds of Barringtonia (two-thirds the natural size). That of B. speciosa represents a seed removed from a fruit displaying the young plant protruding two or three inches. That of B. racemosa represents the lower end of the seedling when the plant is eighteen inches high.
a = the exorhiza. b = the neorhiza invested by the medullary sheath.
This structure of the seeds of Barringtonia speciosa and of B. racemosa was for a long time meaningless to me, until one day, whilst seated on the banks of the Lower Rewa, with a number of the sected seeds and bulbous seedlings gathered around, I reflected that the fruits of the latter species that floated past me in the river-drift were nearly always germinating. This called up “vivipary” to my mind; and as I looked at the Rhizophora seedlings dangling from the branches of the mangrove-trees close by, it occurred to me that this seed-structure might be the result of a lost viviparous habit. One apparently had to deal here not with an ordinary seed containing an embryo in the midst of albumen, but with a seed in an arrested stage of germination surrounded by a body that might perhaps prove homologous with the “cotyledonary body” of Rhizophora. The process of development that goes on without a break in Rhizophora, from the fertilisation of the ovule to the detachment of the seedling from the branch, was here, as I considered, arrested after germination had begun, but before the protrusion of the seedling from the fruit. With nearly all plants, as I reflected, there is a rest-stage of varying length, which might be called the seed-stage. With the mangrove-genera, Rhizophora and Bruguiera, I had convinced myself by a long series of observations, the results of which are given in Chapter XXX., that this rest-stage does not exist. It occurs, I argued, in Barringtonia, but only after germination has begun, and, therefore, displaced when compared with the typical seed-stage of most plants.
In this connection it may be noted that a difference in germinating behaviour might be expected between the two shore species on account of their difference in stations, Barringtonia speciosa growing on the sandy beach, and B. racemosa in the wet ground around a mangrove-swamp. There is a strong suspicion that the rest-stage in B. racemosa is very short, though I never found germination in progress on a tree (see Note 37). There is no doubt, on the other hand, that the rest-stage of B. speciosa is often, as with most other plants, very long. This, then, was my lesson from the Barringtonia fruits on the banks of the Rewa, and the question arose whether this interpretation of these curious seed-structures accorded with the opinion formed of their nature by botanists.
Curious seed-structures of this kind must have their significance in the history of the plant; and on returning to England I looked a little further into the matter. To follow up this kind of inquiry, however, would carry me far beyond the limits prescribed for this note, and I have only treated it here in a tentative fashion. Different botanists of eminence have paid attention to this subject, amongst them Roxburgh, Thomson, and Miers (see Dr. T. Thomson in Journ. Linn. Soc. Bot., vol. ii., p. 47, 1858, and Mr. J. Miers in Trans. Linn. Soc. Bot., vol. i., 1880). It would appear that the seed-structure of Barringtonia is also found in Careya, a genus of the same Myrtaceous tribe, and in Garcinia and other genera of the Guttiferæ, as well as in other inland plants.
Mr. Miers, after reviewing the opinions of his predecessors, gives the results of his own investigations. The solid embryo found in Barringtonia and many other genera consists, he observes, (a) of an external portion, the “exorhiza,” which nourishes the germinating seed and then dies away; (b) of an internal portion, the “neorhiza,” which, growing at each end, forms the central portion of the stem and root; and (c) the “medullary sheath” of Mirbel, that lies between the two, and is composed of elementary vascular tissue, which ultimately gives origin to the wood, bark, and leaves of the stem and yields woody fibre to the root. The exorhizal portion in some cases, as in Barringtonia acutangula, splits into four parts during germination. Mr. Miers compares this seed-structure with that of Rhizophora, employing the same terms, “neorhiza” for the internal portion which forms the seedling, and “exorhiza” for the external portion which merely nourishes it. However, I may add that the exorhizal portion in Rhizophora, as shown in Chapter XXX., is now regarded as formed by the coalesced cotyledons, and is termed the “cotyledonary body”; so that by implication the corresponding part of a Barringtonia seed should be regarded from the same standpoint.
It may be apposite to notice here that Barringtonia racemosa displays one capacity which does not appear to belong to B. speciosa. The branches stuck in wet soil throw out roots and establish themselves. This capacity of vegetative reproduction is turned to account by the Fijians, who make “live-fences” of this tree in wet localities.
NOTE 51 (page 135)
ON A COMMON INLAND SPECIES OF SCÆVOLA IN VANUA LEVU, FIJI
This is a tall shrub, or small tree, nine or ten feet high, which corresponds with S. floribunda, Gray, as far as Seemann describes it. It has small, black, juicy drupes, well suited for dispersal by birds, having no “suberous” mesocarp as in the shore species (S. Kœnigii), and no capacity for dispersal by currents. It grows, much like the Hawaiian inland species, in exposed situations where there is plenty of light, as on mountain-peaks, at the borders of forests, in open-wooded districts, and in the plains, and is to be found at all elevations from near the sea up to the highest mountain summit (3,500 feet) when the station is suitable. I noticed it on the higher slopes and frequently on the tops of nearly all the principal mountains that I climbed. It is evident that birds carry the “stones” from one mountain-peak to another, and no doubt they explain the presence of the species in Tonga. Dr. Seemann speaks of it as a beach plant in Viti Levu. The plant familiar to me in Vanua Levu is only on very rare occasions to be seen as an intruder in the beach-flora.
NOTE 52 (page 137).
ON THE CAPACITY FOR DISPERSAL BY CURRENTS OF COLUBRINA OPPOSITIFOLIA, AN INLAND HAWAIIAN TREE
The seeds in my experiments sank within ten days; but they are not readily detached from the fruit, as in the case of the buoyant seeds of the littoral species (C. asiatica). The fruits, which may float for a week or two, break down, as Hillebrand observes, tardily and imperfectly, and could give but little assistance to dispersal by water.
NOTE 53 (page 141)
ON THE GENUS ERYTHRINA
We have in E. indica a widely distributed littoral species, ranging from India through Malaya to eastern Australia, and over nearly all the groups of the Pacific, reaching to Tahiti and the Marquesas, but not occurring in Hawaii. It is associated in Fiji and Tonga with another shore-species, E. ovalifolia, Roxb., found also in India and Malaya. I did not come on the second species in Fiji, and according to Seemann it is rare. It is possible that there is a genetic connection between the two; and it is noteworthy that in one case Seemann was uncertain (p. 426) whether the species was E. ovalifolia or only a variety of E. indica.
In different parts of their areas both these species may be found inland. This no doubt is to be connected with their occasional cultivation. The Polynesians who esteem E. indica for its handsome scarlet flowers and its scarlet seeds often plant it near their houses; but it is curious that if we look at the pages of Seemann, Horne, and one or two other botanical authors who have written on the Pacific, we find no reference to its littoral station, the first-named botanist merely characterising it in Fiji as occurring “wild or planted.”
However, in various localities in Fiji, as on the shores of Natewa Bay in Vanua Levu, Erythrina indica thrives as a characteristic beach tree. Dr. Reinecke speaks of it as widely spread on the Samoan coasts; and the French botanists refer to it as a tree of the Tahitian beaches. Prof. Schimper frequently mentions the two littoral species of Erythrina as amongst the components of the Malayan strand-flora. Dr. Treub, when he visited Krakatoa in 1886, three years after the eruption, noticed some young plants of Erythrina growing on the shore; whilst Prof. Penzig in 1897 found that both E. indica and E. ovalifolia had established themselves on the beach. Mr. Kurz again is quoted by Prof. Schimper (p. 170) as including E. indica amongst the “beach-jungle” of Pegu.
There is abundant evidence in support of the dispersal of the genus by currents. I have observed the seeds of Erythrina indica on the beaches of Keeling Atoll. Schimper noted Erythrina seeds amongst the stranded drift of the Java Sea. Treub remarked young plants of the genus growing on the shore of Krakatoa three years after the great eruption, and Penzig places Erythrina indica and E. ovalifolia amongst the beach-plants brought to Krakatoa through the agency of the currents. The seeds of E. indica not infrequently came under my observation stranded on the Fijian beaches and floating in the Rewa estuary; and in an experiment made in Fiji they still floated after five months in sea-water. Mr. Hemsley years ago formed the opinion, from the drift collections at Kew, that the genus was dispersed by the currents. I may here add in further illustration of this point that Erythrina seeds were found by me in South America floating in numbers in the Guayaquil estuary and stranded on the beaches of Ecuador.
It is noteworthy that, unlike some of the other shore-plants, Erythrina indica has at least three sets of names in the South Pacific. Thus it is known as Rara and Ndrala in Fiji, Ngatae in Samoa, Futuna, and Rarotonga, Atae in Tahiti, and Kenae in the Marquesas. The Samoan and Tahitian name recalls the Burmese name of Ka-thit, whilst the Marquesan word is suggestive of the Makassar name Kăne or Kanur. The Hawaiian name of E. monosperma is Wili-wili, which evidently has arisen from the screw-like movement of the open pod when thrown into the air. The same name in the form of Wiri-wiri is applied for a similar reason to Gyrocarpus Jacquini in Fiji. It is possible that the Polynesians have assisted the dispersal of the coast-species (E. indica); but the currents could have performed the distribution unaided, and the variety of aboriginal names is not in favour of human intervention.
With reference to the possible extermination by insects of Erythrina in Hawaii, it has been before remarked (p. 143) that this would not account for the survival of an inland species, such as E. monosperma in Hawaii. However, this species since the occupation of that group by the white man is on the road to extinction. Dr. Hillebrand observes that the species was much more common formerly than in his time (1851-1871), a result evidently due to the ravages of the common tropical mealy bug, a pest of relatively modern introduction (see Koebele in Stubb’s Agricultural Report on Hawaii). It may be added here that Cordia subcordata, a littoral tree, had been almost exterminated by the ravages of a small moth even in Dr. Hillebrand’s time. During my examination of the coasts of the large island of Hawaii, in 1896-7, I was shown several places not long before occupied by this tree; and, as indicated in Note 29, it only came under my notice in a few localities.
NOTE 54 (page 145)
ON THE GENUS CANAVALIA
Of the three maritime species, C. obtusifolia, D.C., occurs on beaches all round the tropical zone. I was familiar with it on North Keeling Island in the Indian Ocean, in Fiji, and in Ecuador. C. ensiformis, D.C., is just as widely spread; but it is both inland and maritime in its station, and except when collecting it in the Solomon Islands I have had but little acquaintance with it. C. sericea (Gray) is a characteristic beach-plant in Fiji, but is infrequent. In Rarotonga, according to Cheeseman, it is a common littoral plant. It was also found in Tahiti by Banks and Solander, and is seemingly peculiar to the Pacific islands.
Besides C. ensiformis, the other two shore species may at times be found inland. Thus it is singular that the French botanists do not, as a rule, speak of C. sericea as a Tahitian beach plant; and Nadeaud only remarks, concerning its station, that it frequents the wooded slopes of the valleys of the interior. In North Keeling Island C. obtusifolia presented itself to me not only as a beach-creeper, its usual habit, but as a climber over the branches of the coast trees. In one locality in Vanua Levu I found a variety of this species growing on a hill a mile inland and about 700 feet above the sea. On one of the beaches it approached C. sericea in some of its characters, as in the form of the calyx and in the hairiness.
Although the seeds of C. obtusifolia have long been known to be dispersed by the currents, having been found in Moseley’s collections of floating drift off the New Guinea coast (Bot. Chall. Exp., IV, 291), they displayed remarkable fickleness when experimented on by me in Fiji. As a rule, however, about 10 per cent. sank at once in sea-water, 50 per cent. floated after three weeks, and 10 per cent. after twelve weeks. Of seeds that had been kept three years, 50 per cent. floated after eleven weeks. The seeds are to be found in numbers amongst the stranded drift of the Fijian and Ecuador beaches, and I noticed them also afloat in the Rewa estuary of Fiji.
I tested the floating-power of the seeds of C. sericea in Fiji, and found that half of them remained afloat after sixty days. On the seeds of C. ensiformis I have not experimented; but their buoyancy is indicated by the frequent occurrence of the plant on the Solomon Island coral islets (Guppy’s Solomon Islands, pp. 290, 292, 296), and probably the Canavalia seeds identified at Kew from my drift collections on these islets belong to this species. Schimper (p. 166) refers to the seeds of a Canavalia in Java that were still afloat after ten weeks. These littoral plants are indebted for the floating capacity of the seed to the buoyant kernel.
NOTE 55 (page 42 and Note 20)
THE INLAND EXTENSION OF SCÆVOLA KŒNIGII
Scævola sericea (Forst.), a hairy variety of this littoral plant, will probably prove in some localities to be the inland form of the species. Dr. Reinecke, who mentions only this variety for Samoa, says that it is found in very moist ground in river-ravines, and no other station is referred to. It would seem that both the glabrous and hairy forms occur in Hawaii. Dr. Seemann speaks of the hairy variety as littoral in Fiji.
NOTE 56 (page 149)
ON THE CAPACITY FOR DISPERSAL BY CURRENTS OF SOPHORA TOMENTOSA, S. CHRYSOPHYLLA, AND S. TETRAPTERA
(1) Sophora tomentosa, Linn.—The moniliform pods will float for few weeks, but it is to the seeds liberated by the breaking down of the pod that the wide dispersal of this beach-plant by the currents is due. When experimenting on the freshly obtained seeds in Fiji I found that four-fifths of them floated after three months in sea-water. With seeds that had been kept for three years, half floated after twelve months and retained their sound condition. The seeds owe their floating power to the buoyant kernel.
(2) Sophora chrysophylla, Seem.—The dry pods of this Hawaiian mountain species float between one and two weeks in sea-water, but being brittle they readily break down and the seeds escape. The seeds have no buoyancy even after drying for four years.
(3) Sophora tetraptera, Ait., from the coast of Chile.—After floating from ten to fourteen days in sea-water, the dry pods become sodden and begin to break up, the seeds escaping. Since, however, the pods tend to decay and break open on the tree they would not be available for dispersal by currents. Out of a number of freshly gathered seeds all floated buoyantly after a month in sea-water, when the experiment ended; and of seeds that had been kept over a year six out of ten floated after four months in sea-water, two of them germinating afterwards in soil. Like those of S. tomentosa the seeds possess buoyant kernels to which the floating power is due. On account of the hardness of the tests the seeds to ensure rapid germination require to be filed.
NOTE 57 (page 153)
ON THE SPECIES OF OCHROSIA
Schumann distinguishes the following species:
(a) O. parviflora, Hensl., widely spread in the Pacific islands.
(b) O. compta, Schumann, confined to Hawaii and corresponding to var. B. of O. sandwicensis as given by Hillebrand.
(c) O. borbonica, Spr., synonym O. oppositifolia, Lam., from Mauritius and Madagascar to Java and Singapore.
(d){O. sandwicensis, Gray, of Hawaii. } Both probably varieties of {O. elliptica, Lab., of New Caledonia.} O. borbonica.
(e) O. parviflora, Schumann, of New Guinea, probably identical with O. mariannensis.
NOTE 58 (page 156)
ON PANDANUS (from Warburg)
(a) The size (length) of the drupes of endemic species in oceanic islands.—The drupes of P. reineckei of Samoa are 4-5 cm. (1-3/5 - 2 inches). Those of P. joskei and P. thurstonii in Fiji measure respectively 6 cm. (2-2/5 inch) and 2-1/2 cm. (1 inch).
Out of about sixteen species in the Mascarene Islands (Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodriquez) quite half have drupes 2 - 3-1/2 cm. (4/5 - 1-2/5 inch) in size, whilst they run up to 8 or 10 cm. (3-4 inches), and may be less than a centimetre (2/5 inch).
(b) The affinities of the Fijian and Samoan species.
P. odoratissimus | Wide-ranging | Section Keura. P. joskei | Fiji | Section Lophostigma. P. samoensis | Samoa | Section Lophostigma. P. thurstonii | Fiji | Section Acrostigma. P. reineckei | Samoa | Section Hombronia.
NOTE 59 (page 188)
SEEDS IN PETRELS
Darwin, in his correspondence (1859) with Sir Joseph Hooker, refers to the occurrence of large West Indian seeds in the crops of some nestling petrels observed by Sir William Milner at St. Kilda (Life and Letters, II, 147, 148). Mr. Charles Dixon in Ibis (1885) refers to Sir W. Milner’s observation in the case of the Fulmar Petrel (Procellaria glacialis) and speaks of them as Brazilian seeds brought by the Gulf Stream, adding that he himself found a nut in the crop of one of these birds in the same locality. He supposes that the birds pick them up from the water. Mr. Hemsley very kindly wrote to Sir Joseph Hooker recently on this point with the object of obtaining some idea of the nature of the seeds; but after this lapse of time it has not been found possible to satisfy my curiosity. I live in the hope of their proving to be Cæsalpinia seeds.
NOTE 60 (page 202)
SCHIMPER ON THE HALOPHILOUS CHARACTER OF LITTORAL LEGUMINOSÆ AND OF SHORE PLANTS GENERALLY
As a result of extensive microchemical investigations, this eminent German botanist arrived at the conclusion that plants living on the sea-shore, or in inland stations rich in chlorides, are able, as a rule, to store up in their tissues a large quantity of these salts, a capacity enabling them to live in localities where the subsoil is rich in these materials. This inference, as shown in his experiments, is just as applicable to the shore-plants of temperate regions, such as Aster tripolium, Crambe maritima, and Eryngium maritimum, as it is to such typical littoral plants of the tropics as Barringtonia speciosa, Ipomœa pes capræ, Scævola Koenigii, Tournefortia argentea, &c. However, with the Leguminosæ experimented upon, this capacity of storing up chlorides was often exhibited but slightly or not at all; and characteristic Pacific beach-plants, such as Canavalia turgida, Pongamia glabra, and Sophora tomentosa are especially cited as examples (Schimper’s Ind. Mal. Strand-flora, pp. 140-151; Wolff’s ash-analyses are here quoted).
NOTE 61 (page 215)
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE SUMMIT OF MAUNA LOA
The summit is formed of bare rock and sand, the phanerogamic vegetation ceasing a couple of thousand feet below. Some low plant-forms doubtless occur under the moist, warm conditions near the steam-cracks, since Wilkes mentions his finding a small moss; but with this exception the surface may be described as sterile.
Dryness of the Air and Electrical Phenomena.—Wilkes refers to the association of these conditions more than once in his narrative. Whenever, as sometimes happened, the dew point could not be obtained with Pouillet’s hygrometer, electricity was easily excited, and was developed in large sparks. On taking off the clothes at night, sparks would appear. As shown in the table subjoined, electrical phenomena were noticed during the first few days of my sojourn on the summit when the relative humidity was very low. My red blanket at night crackled in my hands and emitted sparks, and a glowing line was produced by drawing the finger along. Whilst the air was in this condition I observed that the wings of dead butterflies lying on the ground stuck to my fingers tenaciously like a needle to a magnet. The adhesiveness disappeared when the excessive dryness gave place to humidity. The physiological effect on me of the associated dryness and electrical state of the air was displayed in a hot, dry, sweatless skin (cracking and chapping rapidly), severe headache and sore-throat, general lassitude, and great irritability. When the weather changed and the air became humid, these unpleasant symptoms quickly disappeared.
As a result of these dry conditions on the summit of Mauna Loa, decomposition does not occur. I found in one place on the top, on the site of an old camp, the remains of a quarter of beef, the meat fresh but dried up. From a water-bottle left behind by one of the party and subsequently restored to him, I learned that the visit had been made in the previous summer. This non-decomposition seems a little strange, since, as remarked below, flies and other insects were not infrequent on the summit. However, as Hann remarks, when speaking of mountain climates, everything dries much more quickly at great altitudes; animals that have been shot, or killed by falling, become mummies without undergoing decay (Schimper’s Plant-Geography, 697).... The scorching power of the sun in a sky usually cloudless, or nearly so, was a trying feature of my daily experiences; and I found that when I faced it with unshaded eyes during my walks I suffered from severe pain in the eyeballs at night.
Insects on the Summit.—It may seem a strange thing to relate, that in a region apparently absolutely sterile, the flies and other winged insects caused me much discomfort in my small tent when I was confined to it through illness. When lying down one morning I noticed the house-fly, the blue-bottle, and two or three other flies, small beetles not over a fifth of an inch in size, a moth, and a wasp. They were no doubt quite happy in the heat, as the temperature inside was over 80° F., and the sun’s rays felt almost scorching through the thin duck canvas. Butterflies (and occasionally large moths) were often observed flying in a drowsy condition about the summit and were easily caught. They were fond of fluttering around the steam-holes. In places, numbers were to be seen dead and dried up on the ground, the detached wings lying about. In the case of a recently dead butterfly I found its carcase already attacked by numerous small bugs. The butterflies were most frequent when there was a fresh southerly breeze, and were doubtless blown up the slopes from the forests below.
Whymper in his Travels amongst the Great Andes of the Equator gives many particulars of the occurrence of insects at great elevations. He noticed beetles, diptera, butterflies, moths, and several other insects at altitudes of 15,000 to 16,000 feet. At 16,500 feet he obtained a small bug of the genus Emesa. He quotes Humboldt and Bonpland as showing that insects are transported into the upper regions of the atmosphere 16,000 to 19,000 feet above the sea, and he remarks that the transportation of insects by ascending currents of air has occasionally been observed in operation. These facts bear directly on the dispersal of insects.
The Winds.—My tent, which was pitched near the middle of the western border of the crater, happened to be situated in the battle-ground of the northerly and southerly winds, in a region of gusty winds, fitful airs, and dead calms. The northerly winds were usually from N.-N.N.W. and the southerly winds from S.W.-S.S.W., easting in either case being rarely observed, the northerly winds rather prevailing at night. As a result of this location miniature whirlwinds were frequent in the vicinity of my tent, which carried sand into the air and more than once threatened to lift up my tent bodily and carry it off into the crater below. At the north end of the crater-border north-easterly winds prevailed, and at the south end southerly winds occasionally showing easting. When on one occasion I walked round the crater-margin, a fresh south-easterly wind prevailed at most parts of the circumference except in the vicinity of my camp, where there was a light S.S.W. wind both at 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. when I started and returned. The local character of the winds was often displayed in my walks. On one occasion, having left my camp, where a southerly wind was blowing, and walked half a mile to the north, I found a bitterly cold N.N.E. gale in my face which so impeded my progress that I returned to my camp where the same southerly breeze continued.
Commodore Wilkes was encamped on the east side of the crater, and there (December and January) he experienced strong south-west winds, on at least three days having the force of a gale. These are the prevailing winds in this season over the group; whereas in August, the time of my sojourn, south-westerly winds are quite out of season, this being in the midst of the period of the N.E. trades.
It will be gathered from the foregoing remarks that the mere record of the winds is insufficient for the purpose of obtaining any definite notion of the air-currents at this elevation (13,600 feet). It is to close observation of the clouds that we must look for data of importance.
The Clouds.—The clouds on the summit of Mauna Loa were an unending source of interest to me, and I will give briefly the results of my observations. The highest clouds were wispy cirri, often arranged as in a mackerel sky, and evidently at a great altitude. They were only observed on four or five days. (The lower clouds are indicated in the accompanying diagram.) Below them and at no great height above the mountain were to be not infrequently observed isolated woolly clouds that were carried in a few minutes across the sky and had a brief existence, often forming and melting away as one gazed at them. Next, there was a heavy bank of cumulus, which formed on the south-west slope near the top of the mountain, from which lines of cloud extended along each flank. Lowest of all was a broad belt, or rather a sea, of cumulus that was developed on both sides of the mountain about one-third way down its slopes, and during the day-time isolated the peak from the world below. It is with the last two cloud formations that we are most concerned, and I will first describe the sea of cumulus.
The sea of cumulus, as in the case of similar cloud-formations of most other isolated mountains, when viewed from above, as from the mountain-top, presents a cloud-field of dazzling whiteness, sparkling in the sun. Seen from below, as from the coast, it has the dark lowering appearance of the rain-cloud and indicates the rain-belt. Disappearing during the night, this broad belt begins to form again between 8 and 9 a.m., and by 10 or 11 a.m. the lower regions are completely hidden and the mountain’s summit, cut off from the world, rises above the level of the sea of clouds like an island in an Arctic ocean. As the day progresses the clouds become more compact and dense. The usual altitude of this broad belt of cloud is between 7,000 and 8,000 feet. This level is indicated by the burying of the Kohala mountains, which rise to a height of 5,500 feet in the distant north-west corner of the island, and by the usual emergence of the highest summit of Hualalai, which rises, still nearer, to an elevation of 8,275 feet. On some days, however, it attains a height of nearly 9,000 feet. On such occasions the highest peak of Hualalai kept reappearing and disappearing during the day, but the distant summit of Haleakala in East Maui, 10,032 feet in elevation and 80 miles away, was always visible.
Words fail to describe the magnificent aspect of this sea of cloud which shuts off the spectator from the world below. From the summit of the mountain he gazes down on its surface lit up by a sun shining in a typically cloudless sky. At one time it appears as an undulating Arctic land covered with snow of dazzling whiteness. At another time it looks like a hummocky frozen Polar sea sparkling in the sunshine. Through occasional rifts, however, one can discern a dark dismal region of mist and rain-cloud beneath. Miss Bird, who passed a night on the summit in June, 1874, well describes this sea of cloud in her book on the Sandwich Islands as “all radiance above and drizzling fog below.”
[To face page 585.
The heavy bank of cumulus, that forms at noon on the south-west slope at an altitude of 10,000 to 13,000 feet above the sea, and sometimes rises above the mountain, is one of the most conspicuous of the cloud-phenomena on the summit of Mauna Loa. Apparently extending from it, but in reality moving towards it, are two lines of small cumuli that follow the same level along either flank above the sea of cumulus, as is indicated in the accompanying diagram. It was observed by Wilkes in mid-winter, 1840-41, but at a lower level. “Clouds would approach us (he writes) from the south-west when we had a strong north-east trade wind blowing, coming up with their cumulus front reaching the height of about 8,000 feet, spreading horizontally and then disappearing.” During my sojourn this bank formed a very striking feature in the landscape during the early afternoon. On two or three occasions when I visited the south side of the summit and descended for about a thousand feet I passed through this bank, being then exposed to a driving mist coming up the slopes from the south-west. Though its upper surface viewed from a distance is dazzling white, below it is dark and nimboid.
It is to an updraught of warm moist air on the south or south-west slopes of the mountain, and to the prevailing cool north-east trade that strikes the north side of the summit, that we must look for the explanation of the development and situation of this bank. Although the trade-wind is markedly stronger than the south-west updraught, some of the warm, moist, southerly air-currents find their way, as shown by the observations at my camp, along the sides of the summit, and a line of condensation is produced where they come into contact with the cool air of the north-east trade as it sweeps past the flanks of the mountain. Sometimes at my camp, when there was a light southerly breeze blowing, I have noticed the line of small cumuli moving south along the mountain side towards the bank of cumulus.... I may remark that on a few days a small bank of cumulus formed under similar conditions on the north-west side of the summit.
From my study of the clouds I arrived at the conclusion that there were three prevailing air-currents on the summit of Mauna Loa:
(1) The updraught of warm moist air on the south and south-west slopes of the mountain.
(2) The north-east trade wind, the upper limit of this air-current being probably not far above the summit.
(3) An upper air-current from the south-east (E.S.E.-S.S.E.), which, from the velocity of the clouds it carried, was often probably not over a couple of thousand feet above the summit. It may be observed that on the coast at the base of the southern slope of the mountain in the middle of September, when the wind was N.E. and carried the lower clouds with it, the upper clouds were, on several occasions, noticed travelling in the opposite direction, namely, from the south.
The volcano was quiescent during my visit and could have exercised but little influence on the air-currents.
The Shadow of the Mountain.—Every morning and evening, in clear weather, for about twenty minutes after sunrise and before sunset, the shadow of the mountain was thrown back against the sky of the opposite horizon. It seemed as if some Titanic brush, at work in the sky far away, had painted in the profile of the mountain with a very uncanny blue. At sunset the peak was the last to disappear. Commodore Wilkes, who only records it once, namely, at sunset on the 1st of January, describes it as “a beautiful appearance of the shadow of the mountain projected on the eastern sky ... as distinct as possible, its vast dome seemed to rest on the distant horizon.” This phenomenon is, of course, well known in the case of other isolated mountains. According to Murray’s Handbook of Southern Italy (1892), the correct thing for a visitor to Stromboli is to make an early ascent of the cone to observe “the very curious triangular shadow of the mountain cast by the rising sun upon the sea.” Unfortunately I neglected my opportunity when on the island. The shadow of the mountain is also one of the sights of Etna, a dark-violet, triangular shadow (Baedeker) being thrown at sunrise over the surface of West Sicily, that is, on the land. I saw the shadow but imperfectly outlined, as the weather was not favourable at the time of my ascent. When at Nicolosi, on the south slope of Etna, I noticed at sunset a faint shadow of the mountain thrown against the eastern sky. I gathered from a short conversation with Prof. Ricco, the director of the Catania Observatory, when I told him of the shadow of the Hawaiian mountain, that the interest lay in its projection against the sky. It is doubtless akin to the spectre of the Brocken and other mountain spectres.
Some Previous Meteorological Observations on Mauna Loa.—.... Mr. Douglas, the botanist, who was subsequently found dead in a cattle-pit on Mauna Kea, spent a day on the summit of Mauna Loa in the middle of January, 1834. He mentions that a little way below the top the thermometer fell at night to 19° F. The wind on the top was N.W. The air at 11.20 a.m. was 33°, the hygrometer registering 0·5. He remarks that the great dryness of the air was evident without the assistance of the hygrometer (Hawaiian Spectator, vols. I and II, 1838-9).
Commodore Wilkes, in vol. IV of his Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition, gives the following observations on the temperature and winds on the top of Mauna Loa between Dec. 23, 1840, and Jan. 13, 1841. Those on the temperature are incomplete, but they give a fair idea of the prevailing conditions. The degrees are in Fahrenheit’s scale.
Dec. 23, 1840: elevation, 13,190 feet; 3 p.m., 25° F.; strong S.W. gale; night temperature, 15°. Dec. 24, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); night minimum, 22°. Dec. 26, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); violent S.W. gale; night min., 17°. Dec. 27, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); sunrise temp., 20°; night min., 17°; wind, S.W. Dec. 29, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); noon temp. in shade, 47°; night min., 20°. Dec. 30, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); noon temp., 55°; night min., 13°. Dec. 31, 1840: summit (13,600 feet); night min., 17°. Jan. 2, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); sunrise, 20°; wind, N.E. Jan. 3, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); night min., 17°. Jan. 4, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); daylight, 20°. Jan. 8, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); S.W. gale. Jan. 10, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); night temp., 16°. Jan. 12, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); night temp., 17°. Jan. 13, 1841: summit (13,600 feet); strong S.W. wind.
The usual variation of temperature in the twenty-four hours is given as 17°-50°. The south-west was evidently regarded as the prevailing wind, and the clouds are spoken of as sometimes moving from opposite directions towards the same centre.
When Miss Bird spent a night on the summit of Mauna Loa during the eruption of June, 1874, the cold was described as intense, eleven degrees of frost (21° F.).
Observations on the Summit of Mauna Kea.—.... When Prof. Alexander with a party of scientists ascended this mountain (in the summer of 1892), the thermometer at night fell to 13° F., and the trade-wind was found to be blowing as strongly on the summit as down below (Whitney’s Tourist Guide to Hawaii). It is to be inferred that the party camped by the small lake which is a few hundred feet below the actual summit (13,800 feet). This lake, which I visited on May 20, 1897, is about 120 yards across, and evidently shallow, probably not more than three or four fathoms deep. A carpet of algæ covered the bottom. At noon, by the lake, the air in the shade was 53° F., whilst the temperature of the surface-water was 51°. The lower clouds were moving from S.S.E. This lake is said to be permanently frozen over in the winter, and to have been visited by skaters.
Permanent Water Supply on the Summit of Mauna Loa.—In this barren rocky region water derived from the winter-snow is to be found all the year through at the bottom of the deep cracks or fissures in the lava-rock. Such fissures are from two to four feet wide, and in the case of that near my tent the bucket had to be lowered to a depth of seventeen or eighteen feet to reach the water, or rather the ice, since it was often necessary to break the surface ice. In these deep, narrow fissures, which the sun scarcely penetrates, the water would probably be frozen over all through the seasons; but in those of less depth it would remain liquid in summer.
REGISTER OF OBSERVATIONS ON WIND, RELATIVE HUMIDITY, CLOUD, RAIN, AND TEMPERATURE, MADE BY H. B. GUPPY ON THE SUMMIT OF MAUNA LOA AT AN ELEVATION OF 13,500 FEET ABOVE THE SEA, AUGUST 9TH TO 31ST, 1897. (CAMP ABOUT MIDDLE OF WEST SIDE OF CRATER MARGIN)
+-----+-------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------------+--------------+ | | | | | | | | | Air in shade. | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Date.|Obser- | 12-4 | 4-8 | 8-12 | 12-4 | 4-8 | 8-12 |------------------+ Remarks. | | |vation.| A.M. | A.M. | A.M. | P.M. | P.M. | P.M. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Min.| Max.|Range.| | +-----+-------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+-----+-----+------+--------------+ |9 |Wind |S.S.W- |Variable | ... |W.S.W.- |N.N.W.- |N.N.W.- | F. | F. | F. |A beautifully | | | |S.W. 2 | | |W.N.W. 3 |N. 1 | N. 3 | | | |coloured lunar| | |Rel. | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | 27·5| 61·2| 33·7 |halo at 1 A.M.| | | hum. | | | | | | | | | |Electrical | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |condition of | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |the atmosphere| | | | | | | | | | | | |(see text). | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |10 |Wind | ... |N.N.W. 2 |S.S.W.- |S.S.W.- |Calm | ... | | | |Electrical | | | | | |W.S.W. 3 |W.S.W. 2 | | | | | |condition of | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 34 | 42·5 | 46 | ... | 33·5| 59·7| 26·2 |the | | | hum. | | | | | | | | | |atmosphere. | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ... | | | |Faint lunar | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |halo at 8 P.M.| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |11 |Wind |Calm |W.S.W. 1 | ... | ... |S.S.W.- | ... | | | |Electrical | | | | | | | |S.W. 1 | | | | |condition of | | |Rel. | ... | ... | {28·5 | ... | ... | ... | | | |the | | | hum. | | | {21 | | | |}22·5| 61·2| 38·7 |atmosphere. | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ... |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |12 |Wind |Calm |Calm |N.N.W.- |N.N.W. 1 |N.N.W.- |N. 2-4, | | | |Earth tremors.| | | | | |N. 2-3 | |N. 2-4 |S.W.- | | | |Total rain, | | | | | | | | |W.S.W. | | | |10/100. At | | | | | | | | | 3-5 | | | |sunset, wind | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 45 | 79 | 89 | ... | 23 | 54·7| 31·7 |N.W., wet | | | hum. | | | | | | | | | |canvas of tent| | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 5 | | | |froze hard. At| | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 |Rain |Rain |Rain | | | |10 P.M., | | | | | | | | | | | | |strong | | | | | | | | | | | | |southerly | | | | | | | | | | | | |wind, canvas | | | | | | | | | | | | |thawed, rain | | | | | | | | | | | | |with strong | | | | | | | | | | | | |gusty wind | | | | | | | | | | | | |until 4 A.M., | | | | | | | | | | | | |when wind | | | | | | | | | | | | |less. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |13 |Wind |S.W. |S.W. 3-5 | S.W.- |S.W. 3 |Calm; | ... | | | |Earth tremors.| | | | 4-6 | | S.S.E. | |N.W. 1 | | | | |Total rain | | | | | | 3-4 | | | | | | |10/100. | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 86 | 86 | 78 | ... |} | | | | | | hum. | | | | | | |}33·6|48·7 |15·1 | | | |Cloud | ... | 10 | 7 | 10 | 9 | ... |} | | | | | |Rain |Rain |Rain | 0 |Rain |Rain | 0 | | | |Butterflies | | | | | | | | | | | | |flying about | |14 |Wind |N.N.W.- |Northerly,|N.N.W. 3 |N.N.W. 2 |N.N.W. 1 | ... | | | |in a semi- | | | |N. 1 |3 | | | | | | | |torpid state, | | |Rel. | ... | 61·5 | 47 | 42 | 45·5 | ... |} | | |and easily | | | hum. | | | | | | |}32·5|52·2 |19·7 |caught with | | |Cloud | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0-2 | 0 | ... |} | | |the hand. | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |15 |Wind |Northerly,|W.S.W. 1, |S.W.-W. |Calm; |Calm; |N.N.E.- | | | |Wind fitful | | | |1 |N.N.W. 1 |2 |Southerly,|N.N.W. 1 | 1-2 | | | |during day; | | | | | | |1 | | | | | |north-westerly| | |Rel. | ... | ... | 38 | 44·5 |{62 | ... | | | |and south- | | | hum. | | | | |{52·5 | |}28 |}54·7| 26·7 |westerly airs | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7-0 | 0 |} | | |with calms. | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | |16 |Wind | Calm |N.N.W. 2 |N. 3 | ... |Southerly,| ... | | | |Carefully | | | | | | | |1 | | | | |observed the | | |Rel. | ... | ... | {32} | ... | 61 | ... | | | |shadow of the | | | hum. | | | {28} | | | |}26 | 53.2| 27.2 |mountain | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ... |} | | |which, at | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |sunrise and | | | | | | | | | | | | |sunset, is | | | | | | | | | | | | |projected | | | | | | | | | | | | |against the | | | | | | | | | | | | |opposite | | | | | | | | | | | | |horizon. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |17 |Wind | ... |N.N.W. 1 |N.N.W. 2, |N.- |N.N.W. 1 | ... | | | |Fitful | | | | | |Southerly,|N.N.E 3, | | | | | |northerly and | | | | | |2 |Southerly,| | | | | |southerly | | | | | | |2 | | | | | |winds causing | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 32 | 32·5 | ... | ... |} | | |miniature | | | hum. | | | | | | |}20·5|58·7 |38·2 |whirlwinds | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ... |} | | |that carried | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |dust and paper| | | | | | | | | | | | |up into the | |18 |Wind |Calm |S.W. 1 |Variable | ... |S.W. 2 | ... | | | |air. | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 26 | ... | 47 | ... |} | | | | | | hum. | | | | | | |}23 | 58 | 35 | — | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ... |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |19 |Wind | ... | ... |N.N.W. 1, |Northerly,|Northerly,|Southerly,| | | |Through the | | | | | |W.S.W. 1 |3, |2, |3 | | | |day, fitful | | | | | | |S.S.W. 3 |Southerly,| | | | |northerly and | | | | | | | |2 | | | | |southerly | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 20 | 23 |{24 } | ... | | | |breezes. | | | hum. | | | | |{35·5} | |}22 | 58·7| 36·7 | | | |Cloud | ... | ... | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |20 |Wind |Southerly,|Northerly,|Northerly,|S.S.W.- |Northerly,|Southerly,| | | |Fitful | | | |2 |1, | 1, |S.W. 4 |2, |3 | | | |northerly and | | | | |Southerly,|Southerly,| |Southerly,| | | | |southerly | | | | |1 |1 | |1 | | | | |airs, often | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 26·5 | 25 | 29·5 | ... |} | | |reversing | | | hum. | | | | | | |}22 |57·2 |35·2 |several times | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |} | | |in a few | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |minutes. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |21 |Wind |Southerly,|Southerly,|S.S.W. 3-4|S.S.W. 4-5|S.W. 4-5 |S.W. 4 | | | |At camp, | | | |4 |3-4 | | | | | | | |strong | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 35·5 | 31 | 47 | ... |} | | |southerly | | | hum. | | | | | | |}26·5|53·7 | 27·2 |winds all | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ... |} | | |day. At 7 | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |A.M., walked | | | | | | | | | | | | |half-mile | | | | | | | | | | | | |north and | | | | | | | | | | | | |found a | | | | | | | | | | | | |bitterly cold | | | | | | | | | | | | |N.N.E. gale | | | | | | | | | | | | |blowing there,| | | | | | | | | | | | |which forced | | | | | | | | | | | | |me to return | | | | | | | | | | | | |to camp where | | | | | | | | | | | | |the south wind| | | | | | | | | | | | |still blew | | | | | | | | | | | | |freshly. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |22 |Wind | ... |S.S.W. 1 | ... | ... |Calm, | ... | | | |Walked round | | | | | | | |Southerly,| | | | |the crater | | | | | | | |2 | | | | |from 8 A.M. to| | |Rel. | ... | ... | 58 | ... | ... | ... |} | | |6 P.M. | | | hum. | | | | | | |}20·5|46·7 |26·2 | | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ... |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |23 |Wind | ... |S.S.W. 2 | ... |N.N.W.- |Southerly,|Calm | | | |A few drops of| | | | | | |N.E. 1-3, |1 | | | | |rain at 2 P.M.| | | | | | |Southerly,| | | | | | | | | | | | |3 | | | | | | | | |Rel. | ... | ... | {60 | 52·5} | 70 | ... | | | | | | | hum. | | | {54·5 | 64 } | | |}24 | 50·7| 26·7 | | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 3 | 3-8 | 3-6 | 0 |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 |Rain | 0 | 0 | | | | | |24 |Wind | ... |Northerly,|S.W. 1 |N.N.W.- |N.N.W.- |Northerly | | | | | | | | |3 | |N. 2-3 |N. b. E. |2 | | | | | | | | | | | |2-3 | | | | | | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 54·5 | ... | 53 | ... |} | | | | | | hum. | | | | | | |}20 | 52·7| 32·7 | | | |Cloud | ... | 0 | 0-1 | 4 | 0 | ... |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |25 |Wind |Calm | ... |Calms |Calms |Northerly |Northerly | | | |A few drops of| | | | | |with N.W. |with N.W. |and |and | | | |rain at 3 P.M.| | | | | |and S.W. |and S.W. |Southerly |Southerly | | | | | | | | | | airs | airs |airs |airs | | | | | | |Rel. | ... | ... | {42·5 | 73·5} | 61 | ... |}17 | 52·2| 35·2 | | | | hum. | | | {37·5 | 61·5} | | |} | | | | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 2-9 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 |Rain | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |26 |Wind |Northerly,| N.N.W. 1 | ... |N.N.W.- |N.N.W. 2 | ... | | | |Descended | | | |2 | | |N. 3 | | | | | |through the | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 49·5 | ... | 64 | ... |} | | |bank of | | | hum. | | | | | | |}19·5| 53·7| 34·2 |cumulus on | | |Cloud | 0 | ... | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |} | | |S.W. slope and| | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |found driving | | | | | | | | | | | | |mist coming up| | | | | | | | | | | | |the slope from| | | | | | | | | | | | |S.W. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |27 |Wind |Calms |Calms |S.W.- | W.S.W.- |Southerly |Calm | | | |Rain not | | | |with light|with light| W.S.W. 2 | W. 1 | | | | | |measurable. | | | |airs |airs | | | | | | | |Rain-clouds | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 35 | 73·5 | ... | ... |} | | |poured into | | | hum. | | | | | | |}18·5| 50·7| 32·2 |and filled the| | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 0 |} | | |huge crater. | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 |Rain | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |28 |Wind |Calms |Calms |N.N.W.- |S.S.W. 3 |Northerly,|Calms | | | |9 A.M., high | | | |with |with |N. 2-3 | |3 |with | | | |stationary | | | |northerly |variable | | | |variable | | | |cirrus; at | | | |airs |airs | | | |airs | | | |noon, solar | | |Rel. | ... | ... | {46·5 | 64·5} | | | | | |halo; in | | | hum. | | | {59·0 | 73·0} | ... | ... |}15 | 49·7| 34·7 |afternoon, | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 |} | | |nimbus partly | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 |Rain | 0 | 0 | | | |filling crater| | | | | | | | | | | | |causing a | | | | | | | | | | | | |rainbow there;| | | | | | | | | | | | |a few drops of| | | | | | | | | | | | |rain at 4 P.M.| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |29 |Wind |N.N.W.- |N.N.W.- |N.- |N.N.W. 3, |Calms with|Northerly,| | | | | | | |N. 3 |N. 2 |N. b. E. 3|S.S.W. 2 |variable |1 | | | | | | | | | | | |airs | | | | | | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 45 | 44 | 60·5 | ... |} | | | | | |hum. | | | | | | |}21·5| 48·7| 27·2 | | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |30 |Wind |Calms with|Southerly,|N.N.W. |N.N.W. 3 |Calms with| ... | | | | | | | |northerly |1 |2-3 | |variable | | | | | | | | |airs | | | |airs | | | | | | | |Rel. | ... | ... | 32·5 |{41·0} | ... | ... | | | | | | | hum. | | | |{54·5} | | |}18 | 50·7| 32·7 | | | |Cloud | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |} | | | | | |Rain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |31 | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | ... | 18·5| 50·0| 31·5 | | +-----+-------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+----------+-----+-----+------+--------------+
Method of Observation employed by the Author on the Summit of Mauna Loa.—My camp was placed near the middle of the west margin of the crater about 13,500 feet above the sea. The instruments employed were a Sixe’s maximum and minimum thermometer made by Negretti and Zambra, several unmounted thermometers, and a reference thermometer (with a Kew certificate) by the above-named makers, which was used as a standard. The freezing point was also tested for all the instruments on the summit in melting powdered ice. The maximum air observations and those on the relative humidity were taken in a small cave with a hole in the roof, through which there was a steady flow of air. One day was occupied in comparing the cave-observations with those obtained under a temporary screen rigged up outside my tent, the only difference shown being as a rule less than a degree. The minimum observations taken in my tent, where there was no artificial heat, were usually only 1·5° higher than those given by a thermometer outside the tent.
Results of the Observations on the Top of Mauna Loa, Aug. 9-31, 1897
Mean minimum temperature of air in shade 23·2° F. Mean maximum temperature of air in shade 53·8° Mean daily range of temperature 30·6° Lowest reading 15·0° Highest reading 61·2° Mean temperature for the period 38·5°
} Many observations Mean relative humidity, 8-9 a.m., 44·5 % } included which Mean relative humidity, noon ... 43 % } are not given in Mean relative humidity, 5-6 p.m., 56 % } the register.
On Aug. 11th, at 10 a.m., wet bulb, 33·2°; dry bulb, 52°; difference, 18·8°.
On Aug. 19th, at 11 a.m., wet bulb, 35·7°; dry bulb, 56°; difference, 20·3°.
Owing to the varying winds at my camp, the relative humidity fluctuated greatly in a short time. Thus, on Aug. 12 it was 46% at noon, and 79% at 2 p.m.
Average Cloudiness (10 indicating a Sky completely Overcast)
12-4 A.M. | 0 | Cloudless during 12 out of 13 days 4-8 A.M. | 0 | Cloudless during 19 out of 20 days 8-12 A.M. | 1·3 | Cloudless during 13 out of 22 days 12-4 P.M. | 3·5 | Cloudless during 6 out of 22 days 4-8 P.M. | 1·5 | Cloudless during 17 out of 22 days 08-12 P.M. | 0 | Cloudless during 11 out of 12 days
The winds at the camp were extremely variable and local from north and south, usually light, with force 1-3: see under Winds and Clouds in the text.
Rain fell on six days, total 30/100 of an inch: but on four of the days it was not measurable.
NOTE 62 (page 222)
ON THE RELATIVE PROPORTION OF VASCULAR CRYPTOGAMS IN FIJI
According to Seemann’s work, where about 617 indigenous flowering plants and about 195 ferns and lycopods are enumerated, the vascular cryptogams would form about 24 per cent. of the whole flora. (All weeds and cultivated plants are here excluded.) The vascular cryptogams, however, seem to figure too prominently in Seemann’s collections. From Horne’s data, who says that he added 363 flowering plants to the flora, the flowering plants would amount to about 980; and since Baker implies, in Trimen’s Journal of Botany, 1879, that Horne added 42 species of ferns and lycopods to the flora, this would increase the vascular cryptogams to 237, which enables us to estimate the relative proportion of vascular cryptogams in Fiji as about 20 per cent. of the whole flora of vascular plants. This is probably near the truth.
NOTE 63 (page 222)
ON THE TABLE OF VASCULAR CRYPTOGAMS OF TAHITI, HAWAII, AND FIJI
In the case of Tahiti, I have gone carefully through the list given by Drake del Castillo, comparing it with other Polynesian lists given by Seemann, Horne, Hillebrand, Hemsley, &c., and have reduced his endemic species from 19 to 13. The same thing has been done with Hillebrand’s list for Hawaii, some of his species having been found in other parts of Polynesia, thus reducing the endemic species from 75 to 70. The data relating to Fiji are referred to in Note 62.
NOTE 64 (page 223)
ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE TAHITIAN FERNS AND LYCOPODS
I have arranged them as follows, according to the distributions given by Drake del Castillo:—Cosmopolitan, 5; Tropics of Old and New Worlds, 33; Tropics of Old World, mainly Indo-Malaya, 58; “Océanie,” including Australia, 17; Polynesia, 26; South America, 2; peculiar to Tahiti, 13: total, 154.
Out of 141 non-endemic Tahitian species, 107 at least have been recorded from the Fijian area comprising Samoa and Tonga, and 42 from Hawaii. Of the last, all but four occur also in Fiji. There is thus a very small element peculiar to Hawaii and Tahiti alone. Some of them will no doubt be found in the Fijian area; whilst two of them, Acrostichum squamosum and Lycopodium venustulum, are high-mountain forms in Hawaii and Tahiti, which have evidently failed to find a suitable elevation in Fiji.
NOTE 65 (page 225)
DISTRIBUTION OF SOME OF THE MOUNTAIN FERNS OF HAWAII THAT ARE NOT FOUND EITHER IN FIJI OR TAHITI (mainly from Hillebrand)
+-----------------------------+----------------+--------------------------------+ | Species. | Altitude of | General distribution. | | |station in feet.| | +-----------------------------+----------------+--------------------------------+ |Schizæa robusta, Bak. | 3,000- 6,000 |Perhaps a form of S. | | | |australis, Gaud., from the | | | |Falkland and Auckland Islands. | | | | | |Polypodium serrulatum, Mett. | 3,000- 6,000 |Generally diffused in the | | | |tropics and subtropics. | | | | | |Aspidium caryotideum, Wall. | In the forests |Himalayas, South Africa, &c. | | | | | |Aspidium filix mas, Sw. |In the highlands|Over four continents, from the | | | |arctic circle to the higher | | | |levels of tropical mountains. | | | | | |Asplenium trichomanes, L. | 5,000- 8,000 |Temperate zones and the higher | | | |levels of tropical mountains. | | | | | |Asplenium monanthemum, L. | 3,000- 6,000 |American Andes, Madeira, Tristan| | | |d’Acunha, Azores, Abyssinia, &c.| | | | | |Asplenium fragile, Presl. | 4,000- 6,000 |Andes. | | | | | |Asplenium contiguum, K. | 2,000- 5,000 |Lord Howe Island, Ceylon, | | | |Neilgherry Hills. | | | | | |Asplenium adiantum nigrum, L.| 4,000-10,000 |Europe, Asia, Africa, | | | |Atlantic Islands. | | | | | |Asplenium aspidioides, Sch. | 1,000- 6,000 |Andes, Africa, India. | +-----------------------------+----------------+--------------------------------+
NOTE 66 (page 226)
ENDEMIC GENERA OF FERNS IN HAWAII
Hillebrand gives two genera of ferns peculiar to Hawaii, one, Sadleria of Kaulfuss, “scarcely distinct from Blechnum,” and containing four species; the other, Schizostege, constituted by himself, and represented by a single species found in only one or two of the islands.
NOTE 67 (page 241)
ON THE DISPERSAL OF COMPOSITÆ BY BIRDS
The goldfinch’s habit of pecking at the heads of thistles, and pulling out the achenes in bundles, is well known. Gätke mentions two suggestive instances of birds feeding on the fruits of a Composite plant. According to this observer, the Scarlet Grosbeak (Pyrrhula erythrina), when it alights on Heligoland, always feeds on the achenes of Sonchus oleraceus, which it picks off the plant; whilst the Parrot Crossbill (Loxia sp.), feeds in Heligoland on burrs and thistles (Heligoland as an Ornithological Observatory, pp. 407, 409). See Note 91.
NOTE 68 (page 264)
ON SOME OF THE HAWAIIAN ENDEMIC GENERA, EXCLUDING THOSE OF THE COMPOSITÆ AND LOBELIACEÆ
Haplostachys, Phyllostegia, and Stenogyne, all Labiate Genera.—Phyllostegia is not strictly peculiar to Hawaii, since out of the 17 species enumerated in the Index Kewensis, 15 are Hawaiian, 1 Tahitian, and 1 is accredited to Unalaska (one of the Aleutian Islands). The last locality appears to be an error. The species in question is P. microphylla, Benth.; and on looking up the original authority in Linnæa (vi. 570, 1831), I find the locality is thus given: “insula coralligena Romanzoffii,” which is either one of the atolls of the Paumotu Islands in about lat. 15° S. and long. 144° W., or a coral island of the Marshall Group, most probably the former.... I paid some attention to the suitability of the fruits of these three Labiate genera for dispersal by frugivorous birds, for which the fleshy nucules in the cases of Phyllostegia and Stenogyne apparently fit them. Out of the fruits of five species of Phyllostegia examined by me, the seed-coverings in three species, after the removal of the fleshy covering of the nucule, were too soft for the protection of the seed in a bird’s stomach. Hillebrand also observes (p. 347) that the nucules when dried are wrinkled, and absorb moisture easily, a quality which, if true of all the species, would make the distribution of the genus by birds impossible. However, in two species I found the seed-coverings somewhat harder. It would seem that since birds have largely ceased to disperse these plants, the soft-skinned nucules would in the absence of their selective agency more frequently characterise the genus. It is possible that the dry nucules of Haplostachys, which according to Hillebrand are not affected by drying, represent the original condition of those of Phyllostegia, and that the fleshy character has been acquired in this archipelago. It will be seen in the list on page 263, that Haplostachys is regarded by Gray as a section of Phyllostegia. The remarks under Phyllostegia, regarding the softness of the seed-coverings beneath the fleshy coat of the nucule, also apply to Stenogyne; and Hillebrand, in contrasting its fleshy nucules with the dry nucules of Haplostachys, implies that they absorb water, which, I may remark, would render them quite unfit for dispersal by frugivorous birds.
Touchardia (Urticaceæ).—According to Hillebrand, the solitary species is by no means common in the group now. In 1897 I found it growing abundantly some miles up the Waipio gorge, Hawaii.
Cheirodendron (Araliaceæ).—C. Gaudichaudii, the well-known “Olapa” tree, is common in the forests of all the Hawaiian Islands between 2,000 and 5,000 feet; but I noticed it occasionally at greater elevations, as on the south-east slopes of Mauna Kea, where it extends to 7,000 feet. As described on page 343, the “Olapa” often grows in close contact with the Lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha), the two trunks appearing as one. The drupes would attract frugivorous birds and the pyrenes are well adapted for this mode of dispersal. Mr. Perkins states that the drupes are much sought after by the various species of Phæornis, a genus of birds peculiar to Hawaii.
Deterioration of Fruits for Purposes of Dispersal.—Among fruits or endemic genera that have evidently deteriorated in the Hawaiian Group as far as fitness for dispersal is concerned, may be mentioned, in addition to those of Phyllostegia and Stenogyne above noticed, those of the Araliaceous genera, Pterotropia and Triplasandra, and the Amarantaceous Nototrichium. The pyrenes of the first two genera on account of their thin covering, and the seed of the last-named genus on account of its thin testa, seem ill-fitted now for transport in a bird’s stomach, yet we cannot doubt that their ancestors originally arrived in this fashion. The same principle is also illustrated by some Hawaiian non-endemic genera of later eras that possess peculiar species, such, for instance, as in the case of Elæocarpus discussed in Chapter XXVI.
NOTE 69 (page 366)
ON THE GERMINATION OF CUSCUTA
My observations were made on the Hawaiian endemic species (C. sandwichiana) and on a Fijian introduced species. Germination occurs readily in fresh water, the floating seedling growing rapidly. When the germinating seed is placed on wet soil in the shade, the seedling grows at the rate of 3/4 inch (19 mm.) a day. The store of nutriment contained in the swollen radicular end will support the seedling for a couple of days, and if it has not then found a host it withers and dies. At first lying prone the seedling then lifts its upper end into the air, and it was almost pathetic to notice it moving round and round, endeavouring vainly to find some object near. The seedlings make no effort to strike into the soil, and when they are allowed to attach themselves to a plant they ascend rapidly, growing at the upper end and dying at the lower end.
NOTE 70 (pages 477, 480-1)
ON BEACH-TEMPERATURE
My data are rather scanty; but, judging from observations made in Hawaii, in South America, and in the south of England, the following scale would probably be true of typical beaches where the sand is found relatively cool and moist at a depth of four or five inches. This moisture seems to arise entirely from subsoil drainage seaward. When a beach fronts an arid, rainless region, few if any plants grow on it; the sand is loose, hot, and dry at the depth indicated; and the temperature of the surface half-inch rises to between 130° and 140° F., whilst four inches down it is 95° to 100°. Salt-marshes situated behind a beach even in a desert-region change its thermal behaviour, and it would then be more like a beach skirting a vegetated sea-border in the same latitude. The method of observation was as follows:—An unmounted thermometer of the size of a clinical thermometer, but graduated higher, was placed horizontally in the sand half an inch below the surface and a reading taken. It was then pushed vertically into the sand until the bulb was four inches deep and another reading taken. Provided that the sand is moist beneath, the colour does not seem to make much difference, except perhaps in very dark sands, none of which were tested.
_Ordinary Beach-Temperatures with an Unclouded Sky in the Hot Season during the Early Afternoon._
+-----------------------------------+------------------+-----------------+ | |Surface half-inch.|Four inches deep.| | +------------------+-----------------+ |Temperate latitudes about 50-55°| 100-105° F. | 77° F. | |Sub-tropical latitudes about 30-35 | 105-110 | 80 | |Tropical latitudes about 10-20 | 110-120 | 85 | +-----------------------------------+------------------+-----------------+
This illustrates only the average condition. On a calm day in the case of a beach facing south in the South of England, I have obtained exactly the same readings in July as at Valparaiso in January, 112° at surface, 80° four inches deep.
NOTE 71 (page 479)
On the Buoyancy of the Seeds or Seed-vessels of some Chilian Shore Plants
(1) Nolana, probably paradoxa. Common on the beaches of Southern Chile. The ripe drupes have a somewhat fleshy outer covering which they lose when lying on the sand, and present themselves then as dark-brown angular “stones,” often five to six millimetres across. Inside the outer hard covering of the stone is a layer of spongy tissue which gives it buoyancy; but since these coverings are wanting at the scars marking the basal insertion of the drupe, the embryo seems insufficiently protected against injury during flotation in sea-water; and the seed-vessel at first appears to be only fitted for conveyance by the currents over a limited tract of sea. However, in a preliminary experiment on seed-vessels that had been kept a few weeks, I found that 30 per cent. floated after three weeks in sea-water. Subsequently, after drying for a year, the seed-vessels were again tested in sea-water, nearly all of them floating after three months’ immersion. Two of them, removed after six weeks’ flotation, germinated healthily. These fruits are common in beach-drift between Corral and Valparaiso.
(2) Raphanus, near R. maritimus. Growing near beaches in South Chile, and not infrequently represented in the stranded beach-drift by the pods, which in my experiments floated seven to ten days in sea-water, after drying some weeks.
(3) Franseria. A species common on the beaches of Valparaiso and Talcahuano. Its prickly fruits, after being kept six weeks, floated only two to four days. They are well suited for transport in birds’ plumage.
NOTE 72 (page 483)
THE SOUTHERN LIMIT OF THE MANGROVE FORMATION IN ECUADOR.
... The southern limit of the mangrove formation on the west coast of South America is usually placed at 4° S. lat.; but it is probable that the vicinity of Tumbez in lat. 3° 30ʹ S. would be more correct. Baron von Eggers would place it rather further to the north-east, near the frontier of Ecuador and Peru in lat. 3° 20ʹ S. I spent eight days in the locality last named and saw no evidence of the beginning of the mangrove-formation.
NOTE 73 (page 495)
ADDITIONAL NOTE ON THE TEMPERATURE OF THE DRY COAST OF ECUADOR BETWEEN PUNA ISLAND AND THE EQUATOR.
... Baron von Eggers gives the mean annual temperature for El Recreo, about half a degree south of the equator, at 75° F., which is near that of Rio de Janeiro in lat 23° S. on the east coast of the continent. Mr. F. P. Walker has kindly given me the results of temperature-observations covering a period of ten years, taken in the room for testing cables at Santa Elena Point (2° 10ʹ S.), usually about 6·30 a.m. The range of the monthly means was 71° F. (August) to 79·1° (March), and the mean for the year was 74·8°. In that locality a typical daily range would be 65° to 80°; and Mr. Walker believes that a minimum of 59° has been recorded.
NOTE 74 (page 495)
OBSERVATIONS ON THE TEMPERATURE OF THE HUMBOLDT CURRENT FROM ANTOFAGASTA NORTHWARD, BETWEEN JANUARY AND MARCH, 1904 (Fahrenheit scale)
The observations were usually taken at the anchorages, but in some places, as at Ancon and Puerto Bolivar, they were taken from a boat outside the roadstead.
If we wish to ascertain how the Humboldt Current retains its cool temperature as it advances through the tropics to the equator, a glance at the following table will show that the surface-temperatures can aid us but slightly, since they do not vary in accordance with the latitude, a subject further discussed below. We can, however, obtain some valuable indications from the deeper temperatures. Let us take for instance the plane of 60°. Whilst south of Ancon (lat. 11° 45ʹ S.) it was rarely deeper than four fathoms, north of this latitude it descends rapidly, being probably about ten fathoms down at Salaverri and Eten and about twenty fathoms deep at Payta, in latitude 5° S., where the Humboldt Current leaves the coast. Within the Gulf of Guayaquil it is probable that the plane of 60° would descend to nearer thirty fathoms, the region being outside the influence of the current.
Some interesting facts are also elicited from the variation of the surface-temperatures. When we were coasting along at a distance of five or six miles from shore the readings were fairly constant from hour to hour varying only a degree or so. But nearer the land, for instance, about two or three miles away, the variation from hour to hour amounted to two or three degrees, whilst within the limits of the anchorages, a mile and less from the coast, the change from hour to hour amounted to three or four degrees. Nor was there any uniformity at the same hour over the surface of a roadstead. The temperature would often rise or fall a degree every few boat-lengths. Sometimes the inshore water was the coolest and sometimes it was the warmest. Thus at Iquique the inshore water was three degrees warmer than the water half a mile out, whilst at Mollendo, when the temperature one-third of a mile off the shore was 70°, it was 63° close to the rocky coast. The same thing was exhibited at Pisagua, where the surface-water two miles out at sea was 61°, whilst close inshore at the anchorage it was 58°. It was evident that there was a considerable intermingling of the warmer surface and the colder, deeper waters on the coasts of Chile and Peru. This was particularly noticeable on a rocky, steep-to coast, or where there was an uneven bottom. At some places, indeed, the warm upper layer did not exist, the cold water welling up all along the coast. This was especially the case between the 22nd and 19th parallels of latitude, a tract of coast in which lie Tocopilla, Iquique, and Pisagua, and probably the coolest part of the sea-border at this season of the year.
During a fortnight spent at Ancon (11° 45ʹ S.), between January 27 and February 10, I paid considerable attention to the local climatic conditions, and especially to the temperature of the inshore water. The daily range of the air-temperature was only five or six degrees, the average minimum and maximum being 71° and 75·9°, and the mean for the period 73·5°. The mean temperature of the surface-water at the head of the pier, from observations taken at about 7 a.m. and 4 p.m., was 68·6°, or five degrees cooler than the air, the mean temperature in the morning being 69·1° and in the afternoon 68°.
OBSERVATIONS ON THE TEMPERATURE OF THE HUMBOLDT OR PERUVIAN CURRENT
(Made by H. B. Guppy, January to March, 1904. Those at Panama are added for the sake of comparison)
+--------------+----------+----------+--------+--------+---------+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | | | Distance | | | | Depths in fathoms: temperature in Fahrenheit degrees. | | | Depth | from | | | +--------+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+ | Locality. |(fathoms).| shore | S. lat.| Date. | Hour. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | (miles). | | | |Surface.| 1.| 2.| 3.| 4.| 5.| 6.| 7.| 8.| 9.| 10.| 11.| 12.| 13.| 14.| 15.| 16.| 17.| 18.| 19.| 20.| 21.| 22.| +--------------+----------+----------+--------+--------+---------+--------|----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Antofagasta | 22 | 2/3 | 23°40ʹ |{Jan. 12| 5 p.m. | 71° | 70°| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 61°| ...| ...| 57°| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 56°| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | |{Jan. 13| 6 a.m. | 70 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 55 | ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Tocopilla | 18 | 1/2 | 22 0 | Jan. 14| 8 a.m. | 57 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 56 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 55 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Iquique | 9 | 2/3 | 20 15 | Jan. 15|5.30 a.m.| 59 | ...| ...| ...| ...| 58 | ...| ...| ...| 55 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Pisagua | 10 | 1/2 | 19 30 | Jan. 16| 8 a.m. | 57·5 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 56 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Arica | ... | 1/4 | 18 25 | Jan. 16| 7 p.m. | 66 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 57 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |{17 0 | Jan. 17| 8 a.m. | 61·5 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 57 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| |Mollendo | 22 | 1/3 |{17 0 | Jan. 17| 6 p.m. | 65 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 59 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | |{17 0 | Jan. 18|9.30 a.m.| 62 | ...| ...| ...| ...|57·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| 57 | ...| ...| ...| ...| 56 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 55 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Callao | 5 | 1 | 12 3 | Jan. 20| 6 a.m. | 60·5 | ...| ...| ...| ...|58·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Ancon | 17 | 1-3/4 | 11 45 | Jan. 29| 11 a.m. | 66 | ...| ...|6·15| ...|58·5| ...| ...| 57 | ...| 57 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...|56·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Salaverri | 6 | 3/4 | 8 15 |Febr. 21|6.30 p.m.| 65 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 62 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Eten | 7 | 1/2 | 7 0 |Febr. 22| 6 a.m. | 66·5 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| 63 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Payta | 16 | 1-1/2 | 5 0 |Febr. 23| 9 a.m. | 70 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...|67·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...|62·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Puerto Bolivar| 10 | 1 | 3 10 | Mar. 7| noon | 78 | ...| ...| ...| ...|71·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| 70 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Panama | 8 | 3 |{(8 50) | Mar. 23| 4 p.m. | 82 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...|79·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| | | | |{( N.) | Mar. 24| 7 a.m. | 79·5 | ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...|79·5| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| ...| +--------------+----------+----------+--------+--------+---------+--------+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+
The Ancon climate at this period is full of oddities and abnormalities, and in this way typifies much of the coast of Peru. Thus, since the heat of the day is tempered by the cool south-westerly winds which die away in the evening and give place usually to warm, light, northerly and north-westerly breezes, there is, as above remarked, but a small difference between day and night temperatures. The coldest time of the twenty-four hours is not in the early morning but at sunset. The sea off the beach is, on the average, much cooler than the air, which is not a normal state of things; and again, the water is often two or three degrees colder in the evening than it is in the morning, which is very unusual. Though the sea-border is practically a desert for the greater part of the year and has no rain, it is frequently enveloped in drizzling fogs or “garuas.” Judged from a European standard, things go by contraries on the coast of Peru; and this is entirely the effect of the Humboldt Current.
The temperature of the inshore waters of Ancon Bay varied considerably during the twenty-four hours. During the day, with the prevailing southerly wind, the cool waters of the current had free access to the bay, and swept around its border in their course north; but in the night, when northerly breezes occurred, the cold waters of the current were pushed off the coast and their place taken by the warmer inshore waters from the north; and this sometimes continued for a day or two. When the current again got mastery and its clean, cool waters filled the bay, the temperature of the water dropped suddenly five or six degrees, and the bay was filled with fish. At such times men in boats leave the beach, and in a few minutes, with hand-nets and baskets, they obtain thousands of the small fry. Other men, fishing with lines from the pier-head, seem ill-contented unless they can catch fish of the size of small mackerel at the rate of one a minute.
There can be little doubt that on the coasts of Chile and Peru the instincts of fish often lead them astray, on account of the sudden changes of temperature arising from the conflict between the warmer waters of the open sea and the cooler waters of the current. From the preceding remarks it will be inferred that sometimes the current is pushed off the coast for a while and its place taken by the warm waters from the north. At other times it dives down, so to speak, and flows at a deeper level, and warmer waters prevail both out at sea and inshore. At other times again, and this must be most disconcerting to the fish, the cold current suddenly appearing at the coast predominates at the surface for days together, and we have stretches of coast which, although lying within tropical latitudes, are washed by waters having the temperature of the temperate zone. It is to such causes that we must attribute the reckless habits of fish on these coasts. They are known to throw themselves on the beaches in thousands, where by their decay they taint the air long afterwards. Mr. Anderson Smith in his recent book on Temperate Chile vividly describes what goes on on such occasions at the port of Valdivia. At times the scene must be indeed a strange one, since huge octopi are rolled up on the beaches in numbers, and are regarded by the indigenes as deliberately seeking their death. Whether they commit suicide or not, “their beaks that blacken the edge of the sea-wash in places” afford a melancholy proof that their instinct has blundered.
The Mode of Observation.—A thermometer made on the Sixe pattern which I used several years ago for taking the bottom-temperatures of rivers, was employed for the deeper temperatures, and at critical depths the observations were always repeated. This instrument was compared after each set of observations with an ordinary thermometer graduated on the stem, which was compared with my standard thermometer provided with a Kew certificate.... The observations in the Panama Roadstead have been added for the sake of contrast.
NOTE 75 (page 496)
ON THE STRANDED MASSIVE CORALS APPARENTLY OF THE GENUS PORITES FOUND ON THE COAST OF PERU AND NORTH CHILE, AT ARICA (18° 25ʹ S.), CALLAO (12° 3ʹ S.), AND ANCON (11° 45ʹ S.)
At Arica they occurred on the beach only. At Callao they also extended inland on the low spit at Punta for about 100 yards. At Ancon they were found not only on the beach but also twenty or thirty paces inland on the low adjoining plains. Their size varied from three inches to three feet. They were all more or less rounded by wave action, and were extensively burrowed by boring molluscs. Whilst some on the beach still displayed the dried-up soft parts of the boring mollusc, others inland were falling to pieces and undergoing chemical change. There was nothing to indicate that the corals were recently alive; and at Ancon they appeared to have been torn off a rocky spit of andesite that had become exposed on the beach during a recent movement of emergence, of which there is other evidence on this coast. Further particulars are given on page 496.
NOTE 76 (page 429)
STRANDED PUMICE ON ENGLISH AND SCANDINAVIAN BEACHES
Sernander, in his description of the Atlantic drift of the Scandinavian coast, refers to the occurrence of a small amount of true pumice. I have found solitary fragments of acid pumice well rounded by wave-action at Croyde Bay on the north coast of Devonshire, at the mouth of Salcombe Harbour on the south coast of the same county, and at Maenporth, near Falmouth, in Cornwall. Steamer slag, in some cases rudely simulating pumice, is common on all the South of England beaches I have examined. It is also common on the Scandinavian coasts, though seemingly regarded by Helge Bäckström, who is quoted by Sernander, as derived from the factories on the east coast of England. (See on these subjects a paper by Helge Bäckström, “Über angeschwemmte Bimsteine und Schlacken der nordeuropäischen Küsten”; Bihang till K. Sv. V. A. Handl. Bd. 16. Afd. 3, 1890; also a letter in Nature, about 1886, by H. B. Guppy.)
NOTE 77 (page 21)
ON THE MODE OF DISPERSAL OF KLEINHOVIA HOSPITA
This small tree has a very wide distribution in the tropics, ranging from East Africa and the Mascarene Islands through India, South-eastern Asia, Malaya, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands to Fiji and Tahiti. It is a plant that grows in inland open woods as well as amongst the littoral trees on the beach; and it is always doubtful (in Malaya, Fiji, and Samoa) whether to regard it as a shore plant or as an inland plant, different authors varying on this point. In Vanua Levu I formed the opinion that it is only an intruder amongst the littoral vegetation. In accounting for its distribution we have to choose between man, the bird, and the current. Though it may sometimes be noticed in native plantations, as I observed in the Solomon Islands, the tree has no special use; and the Solomon Island natives themselves indicated to me that the parrots that fed on the fruits of the tree aided in distributing the plant. The buoyant behaviour of the seeds, which are freed by the dehiscence of the bladder-capsules on the tree, is not constant. Whilst in the case of the seeds of littoral trees in Fiji I found that 30 per cent. floated after ten weeks, Prof. Schimper ascertained in the case (seemingly) of Malayan seeds that they sank at once. The seed-structure connected with the buoyancy is, as shown on page 105, accidental in character, and reference is made on page 20 to other plants of doubtful littoral reputation, in which the buoyant qualities are variable. The occasional buoyancy of its seeds will only, as I think, explain its occasional station at the coast; and I agree with Prof. Schimper (p. 156) when he attributes its wide distribution to birds, the seeds being hard, crustaceous, and about three millimetres across.
NOTE 78 (page 436)
ON THE “SEA”: AN UNIDENTIFIED WILD FRUIT-TREE IN FIJI
This is a fair-sized forest tree common in places in the lower forests. I have never been able to identify it; but a “putamen” which was sent to the Kew Museum was named Spondias with a query. It is to be hoped its true botanical name will be discovered by one of my successors. Seemann places it amongst the “desiderata” concerning which further information is needed. The fruit is a drupe 2 to 2-1/2 inches long possessing a pleasant fruity odour and inclosing a hard two-celled stone about 1-2/3 inch long, one cell containing a large fleshy seed covered with tawny hair, the other filled with the hair only and containing no seed. The Fijians say that these fruits, large as they are, are swallowed by the fruit-pigeons, the stones being found in their gullet. The leaves are distichous, alternate, lanceolate, eight or nine inches long, glabrous and dark green above, and covered below with a whitish woolly matted tomentum. The empty stones are not uncommon in the stranded beach-drift.
NOTE 79 (page 395)
ON WILLOW-LEAVED RIVER-SIDE PLANTS
A number of observers, beginning with Humboldt, in his Ansichten der Nature, and including Seemann, L. H. Grindon, Ridley, Beccari, and others, have referred to what is called “stenophyllism” in plants. These willow-leaved river-side plants are found all over the globe, such plants usually growing close to the water’s edge in situations where they are liable to be more or less submerged when the river is in flood. Seemann, Beccari, and Ridley mention more than two dozen genera belonging to a great variety of orders, and including Acalypha, Antidesma, Calophyllum, Eulalia, Eugenia, Fagræa, Ficus, Garcinia, Ixora, Lindenia, Melastoma, Podocarpus, Psychotria, &c., all tropical, and represented either in Fiji, Borneo, or in the Malay Peninsula; whilst my readers will recall amongst temperate floras river-side plants of the genera Epilobium, Lythrum, Salix, &c., possessing the same form of leaf and the same station. The genus Eugenia comes under this category in Fiji, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula, with reference to one or more of the species. In Fiji, species belonging to the genera Lindenia and Dolicholobium especially attracted my attention in this respect. It is noteworthy that several of the Bornean plants and some of the Fijian plants here concerned are endemic. Just as I have remarked in the question of the buoyancy of seeds and fruits, that not all water-side plants have buoyant seeds or fruits, but that nearly all plants thus endowed are found at the water-side, so we may say of the willow-leaved plants, that not all river-side plants have the willow-form of leaf, but that plants thus characterised gather at the river-side. Beccari and Ridley regard this willow-form of leaf as the result of adaptation. Seemann remarks that we have here the old question whether the webbed feet of a duck are the cause or the effect of the bird’s swimming; and I take the same position. (See Seemann’s Flora Vitiensis; Ridley in Trans. Linn. Soc. Bot., vol. iii. 1888-94; and Beccari’s Nelle Foreste di Borneo, 1902, or the English edition of 1904.)
NOTE 80 (pages 255, 504)
MR. PERKINS ON THE HAWAIIAN LOBELIACEÆ (Fauna hawaiiensis, vol. I.)
My view, that the early Hawaiian Lobeliaceæ acquired the monstrous form of their flowers in the humid forests of a later age, is supported by the observations of Mr. Perkins on the connection between the highly-specialised nectar-eating Drepanids of Hawaii and the highly-specialised flowers of the Tree-Lobelias, a subject further discussed in Chapter XXXIII. This naturalist ascertained, in the case of one of the trees, that fertilisation could only be effected by these birds. So close is the biological connection between the Drepanid and the Tree-Lobelia, that Mr. Perkins finds here in part the cause of the development of the most remarkable forms of the birds. The botanist, also, would not dissociate the plants from this conclusion. There would be every reason to look for abnormal growth in birds and plants when the bird depends on the flower for its food, and the flower is dependent on the bird for its pollenisation. It is through such guises that the zoologist and the botanist have to penetrate when establishing the systematic affinity.
NOTE 81
ON THE VERTICAL RANGE OF SOME OF THE MOST TYPICAL AND MOST CONSPICUOUS OF THE PLANTS IN THE FORESTS ON THE HAMAKUA SLOPES OF MAUNA KEA, HAWAII
During a descent of this mountain on its north side to near Ookala, the conditions were unusually favourable for recording the range of altitude for some of the plants easily recognisable.
Acacia koa began at 6,700 feet, and extended down to 2,300 feet.
Rubus (“akala”) began at 6,500 feet, and extended down to 2,500 feet.
Cheirodendron (“olapa”) began at 6,400 feet, and extended down to 2,200 feet.
Cyanea, a lobeliad growing on trunks of tree-ferns, began at 4,000 feet, and extended down to 2,300 feet.
Freycinetia began at 3,850 feet, and extended down to 2,000 feet.
Asplenium nidus began at 2,800 feet, and extended down to 2,200 feet.
Aleurites moluccana began at 1,800 feet, and extended down to 50 feet.
Metrosideros polymorpha, ranging through all the zones.
NOTE 82 (page 416)
ABORIGINAL WEEDS[7]
(Found by Captain Cook’s Botanists, Banks, Solander, the Forsters, Nelson, &c., in the Pacific Islands, 1768-80)
+-------------------------------+---------------------------------+----------------------------------+ | | Locality given by Cook’s | General distribution. | | | botanists. | | +-------------------------------+---------------------------------+----------------------------------+ |Cardamine sarmentosa | Tahiti | Polynesia. Introduced into Peru.| |Sida microphylla | Tonga, New Hebrides | Old World tropics. | |Sida rhombifolia | New Hebrides. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Urena lobata | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Waltheria americana |{ Tahiti. H. |} Tropics of Old and New World. | | |{ New Caledonia |} | |Oxalis corniculata | Tahiti | Old and New World. | |Cardiospermum halicacabum | Tahiti. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Desmodium polycarpum | Tahiti | Old World. | |Phaseolus truxillensis | Tahiti. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Lablab vulgaris | Tahiti | Old World tropics. | |Abrus precatorius | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Cassia sophora | Tonga | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Hydrocotyle asiatica | New Caledonia | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Oldenlandia tenuifolia | New Hebrides | Old World? | |Oldenlandia paniculata | Tonga | Old World tropics. | |Geophila reniformis | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Ageratum conyzoides | New Hebrides. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Adenostemma viscosum | Tahiti. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Eclipta alba | New Hebrides | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Siegesbeckia orientalis | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Bidens pilosa | Tonga | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Dichrocephala latifolia | Tahiti, Tonga, New Hebrides | Old World tropics. | |Sonchus asper | Tonga, New Zealand | Old World. | |Ipomœa insularis | New Hebrides, Tonga, Hawaii | Australia and Polynesia. | |Ipomœa bona-nox | New Hebrides, Tonga, Tahiti. H.| Tropics of Old and New World. | |Solanum nigrum, var. oleraceum.| Tahiti. H. | Old and New World. | |Physalis angulata | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Vandellia crustacea | Tahiti | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Leucas decemdentata | Tahiti | Old World tropics. | |Teucrium inflatum | Tonga | New World tropics. | |Amarantus melancholicus, var. | | | | tricolor | New Hebrides, Tahiti | Old World. | |Euxolus caudatus | Tonga, Tahiti | Old World tropics. | |Achyranthes aspera | Tahiti | Old and New World. | |Cyathula prostrata | Tahiti | Old World tropics. | |Fleurya interrupta | Tahiti, Tonga | Old World tropics. | |Commelina pacifica | Tonga, New Caledonia. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | |Eleusine indica | Tahiti. H. | Tropics of Old and New World. | | +-------------------------------+---------------------------------+----------------------------------+ Footnote 7:
Seemann is the principal authority, the results of his examination of the old collections being given in his Flora Vitiensis. Species regarded by Hillebrand as indigenous in Hawaii or as existing in that group at the time of its discovery by Cook are indicated by H in the second column.
NOTES 83-89 omitted
NOTE 90 (page 29)
ON THE BUOYANCY OF THE SEEDS OF EUPHORBIA AMYGDALOIDES AND E. SEGETALIS
The seeds of both species have no proper buoyancy, and display no structure in their testas suggesting it; though, through the shrinking of the nucleus, a temporary floating power may be acquired with less mature or imperfect seeds. They support the general principle indicated for the British species on page 29.
NOTE 91
MR. E. KAY ROBINSON ON THE DISPERSAL OF ASTER TRIPOLIUM
According to this naturalist, the seeds of this plant are eaten in winter by snow-buntings on the English east coast. In reply to my query he tells me that the “draggled fluff still containing seeds” might easily adhere to birds (The Country-Side, Sept. 30, 1905).
GENERAL INDEX
Note.—Several subjects are worked up in this index, which, on account of the plan of the book, are not dealt with connectedly in the text. As examples may be cited the entries under the heads of “Hawaiian Flora”; “Species, their development”; “Fruit-pigeons”; “Polymorphous Species”; &c.
The figures in larger type indicate the pages where the subject is treated at length or where the most important points are discussed. This sign is not often used where the references can be classed, or where several references of importance belong to the same subject.
Abrus precatorius, 531, 605
Acacia farnesiana, 478, 552, 555, 556, =557=, =559=
Acacia heterophylla, 200
Acacia koa, 151, =200=, 533, 604
Acacia laurifolia, 45, 133, 134, =164=, 166, 200, 529, 551
Acacia richii, 531, 549
Acæna exigua, 253, 275; genus, 270-2, =275=, =276=
Acalypha, 395, 603
Acer campestre, 536
Achillea millefolium, 536
Achras, 373
Achyranthes aspera, 605
Acorus; home of the genus, 396
Acrostichum squamosum, 593
Adaptation in relation to means of dispersal, 11, =99-103=, 105, =119-129=, 324, 516, 522
Adenanthera pavonina, 159, 420
Adenostemma viscosum, 240, 417, 568, 605
Ægiceras, 470-1
Æthusa cynapium, 28, 536
Afzelia bijuga, 21, =93=, 107, =170-6=, 436, 529, 563
Agapetes, 265
Agathis: see Dammara
Ageratum conyzoides, 417, 531, 605
Aglaia, 376
Agrostemma, 471
Agrostis, 272, 275, 538
Aira cæspitosa, 417, 418
Ajuga reptans, 28, 537
Alchemilla arvensis, 418, 536
Alchemilla vulgaris, 417
Aleurites moluccana, 59, 61, 361, =418=, 435, 438, 533, 549, 554, 558-9, 560, 604
Alexander, Prof., 587
Algaroba, 485, 557
Algerian beach-flora, 34
Alisma natans, 537
Alisma plantago, 38, 92, 537
Alisma ranunculoides, 537
Alliaria officinalis, 536
Alnus glutinosa, 31, 37, 430, 537
Alphitonia, 333, =346=, 357, 531
Alpine floras, 4, 34, 238; see under Mountain floras
Alpinia, 531
Alopecurus, 538
Alsinidendron, 262-3
Alstonia, 381, =384=, 548
Alyssum maritimum, 536
Alyxia, 334, =344=, 531, 533
Amarantus melancholicus, 605
Amarouria, 265
America, as the home of tropical shore-plants, 67-75; see under Hawaiian flora and under Tahitian flora for the American plants in those islands
Amorphophallus, 412, 414
Anagallis arvensis, 537
Ancon (Peru), 482, 497; climate, 492, 598
Angelica sylvestris, 28, 536
Aniseia uniflora, 530, 563
Anona paludosa, 68, 77, 109, 115, 435, 438, 486, 488-9, 498
Antarctic flora, represented in the Pacific islands, 271-3, 287, 292, 294, 305, 503-4, 518
Anthyllis vulneraria, 536
Antidesma, 371-2, 603
Antofagasta (Chile), beach-drift, 480
Apetahia, 252, 256-7
Apium graveolens, 28, 536
Apium inundatum, 28, 536
Apium nodiflorum, 28, 37, 536
Arabis albida, 568
Arabis hirsuta, 536, 568
Arabis thaliana, 536, 567
Arachis hypogæa, 479
Araliaceæ, 261-3
Araucaria, 298
Arcangeli, Prof., on the Italian species of Medicago, 431
Arenaria peploides, 35, 36, 107, =116=, 429-32, 536, =541=, 544
Argemone mexicana, 533
Argyreia tiliæfolia, 20, 106, 110, 533-4, 558
Argyroxiphium, 236-8, 240, 243-4
Arica (Chile), 481-2, 497
Armeria vulgaris, 33, 34, 36, 511, 537, =540=
Armeria maritima, 477
Artemisia, 238, 240, 269, 272, =278-9=, 540
Artemisia absinthium, 279, 536, 540
Artemisia maritima, 33
Artemisia tridentata, 279
Artemisia vulgaris, 279, 536, 540
Artocarpus incisa, 531
Artocarpus integrifolia, 531
Arum maculatum, 537
Arundel, Mr., 49, 179
Arundo phragmites, 538
Asparagus, 538
Aspidium aculeatum, 226
Aspidium caryotideum, 593
Aspidium filix mas, 225, 593
Asplenium adiantum nigrum, 225, 593
Asplenium aspidioides, 593
Asplenium contiguum, 593
Asplenium fragile, 593
Asplenium monanthemum, 593
Asplenium nidus, 554, 604
Asplenium trichomanes, 225, 593
Astelia, 270-2, 274, 290, =291=, 292-4, 305
Aster tripolium, 28, 34-6, 89, 536, 540, 545, 581, 605
Astrocaryum, 499
Astronia, 376
Atlas, Great; flora, 238, 277
Atriplex patula, 537, 544; genus, 284, 416, 546
Avicennia, 68, 69, 77, 78, 438, 484-5, 489, 498
Azolla, 488
Azores, 505
Bäckström, Helge, 601
Baillon, on the Lobeliaceæ, 251
Baker, Mr., on Fijian ferns, 224, 592
Bakeria, 265
Ball, Mr., 238, 476
Ballota nigra, 28, 537
Bananas: see Musa
Banyans, 387
Barbarea vulgaris, 536
Bark, in beach-drift, 430
Barratt, Mr., 215
Barringtonia formation, 550
Barringtonia, genus; buoyancy and structure of fruits, 17, 18, 121, 160; mode of dispersal, 161; seed-structure and vivipary, 132, 168, 573; relation between coast and inland species, 134, 166
Barringtonia edulis, 19, 161, 531, 573
Barringtonia excelsa, 19, 108, 574
Barringtonia racemosa, buoyancy of fruits, 18, 161, 529; structure of seeds and fruits, 108, 161, 564, 573-6; fruits in drift, 76, 78, 435; station, 43, 47, 551; distribution and dispersal, 68, 160, 551, 563
Barringtonia samoensis, 19
Barringtonia speciosa, buoyancy of fruits, 18, 161, 529; structure of seeds and fruits, 108, 114, 161, 573-6; fruits in drift, 76, 78, 79, 435-7; station, 43, 551; distribution and dispersal, 49, 56, 57, 64, 68, 160, 563
Barringtonia, undescribed species; in Fiji, 19, 161, 531, 574; in Solomon group, 161
Barrows, Prof., 373
Bartsia odontites, 537
Bassia, 374
Batatas edulis, 415; see under Ipomœa batatas
Batis maritima, 482, 485, =546=, 557
Bats, as dispersing agents, 321, 343, 394, 510, 514
Battandier, M., 34
Bauhinia, 531
Beach flora: see Littoral plants
Beach formation, 43, 550
Beach seed-drift, 31, =429=, 479, 480, 482, 489, 499, =557=
Beach temperature, 477, 480, 481, =595=
Beal, Prof., 568
Beccari, Dr., on the dispersal of Brackenridgea, 124, 569; on the Cassowary as a seed-distributor, 152; on Ficus, 388, 504; on the retrocession of cultivated plants, 161; on Sararanga, 156; on willow-leaved plants, 603
Beech-nuts in drift, 429
Begonia, 394, 509
Begoniaceæ, 263, 394
Bell, Mr. Jeffrey, on Peruvian corals, 497
Bentham, Mr., 2, 423; on the Compositæ, 236, 245, 248
Berberis vulgaris, 535
Berkeley, Mr., 539
Bermuda, 348, 351
Bernicla sandwicensis, 241, 275, 283
Berrya, 379
Beta maritima, 35, 537, 542
Betula alba, 537
Bidens, 379
Bidens cernua, 28, 31, 536, 540, 544
Bidens pilosa, 379, 533, 605
Bidens tripartita, 28, 536, 544
Bird, Miss, 584, 587
Birds, differentiation of, 5-8, 504-6, 514, 520-2; crossing oceans, 506; migrations, 505-6; Polynesian, 67; at high altitudes, 241; biologically connected with plants, 504; as seed-dispersers, 5, 205, 226, 241, 296, 321; see under Fruit-pigeons, Ducks, Geese, Sea-birds, Tetraonidæ, &c.
Bischoffia, 381, =386=, 531
Blysmus rufus, 537
Bobea, 262-3
Boehmeria, 263, 356
Boerhaavia, =355=, 552, 568
Bonin Islands, 54, 320
Boobies (Sula), as seed-dispersers, 188, 347, 356, 511
Borago officinalis, 537
Bourbon Island: see Mascarene Islands
Bourne, Mr., 172
Brackenridgea, 113, 124, 569
Brandis, Dr., on the dispersal of Santalum album, 283
Brassica, 536
Breadfruit (Artocarpus), 412, 415, 531
Breweria, 362-3
Brighamia, 252, 255, 258
British flora, 23, 31, 115, 432, 535, 539-44
Brown, Dr. R., on seed-dispersal by sea-birds, 510
Brown, Mr. R., on a drift seed of Cæsalpinia, 189
Broussaisia, 263
Bruguiera, 43, 441, 551; dispersal by currents, 48, 55, 77, 94, =461-2=, 467, 529; distribution, 54, 68, 69, =461=, 563; in beach-drift, 435, 437, 461; seed-development and germination, =463-6=, 468-71; fertilisation, =462=
Bryonia dioica, 536
Buller, Sir W., on the fruits and seeds eaten by New Zealand birds, 292, 296, 301, 321, 337, 347, 508, 541
Buoyancy of seeds and fruits, of Pacific plants, 12-22, 104-15; of Fijian plants, 44-6, 529, 531-3; of Hawaiian plants, 57, 533, 552; of Tahitian plants, 49; of British plants, 23-39, 115, 535-8, 539-44, 566; its relation to sea-density, 88-98, 516; structures concerned, 17, 104-18; the question of adaptation, 119-29, 516, 569; effect of inland extension, 121, 568; the great sorting process, 16, 24, 30, 515; long flotation experiments, 530, 539; tables showing results of experiments, 529-38, 552; effect of drying, 535, 538, 539-44, 571-2; precautions in testing buoyancy, 566; the risks of the floating seed in warm seas, 79-87
Burkill, Mr., on the Tongan flora, 224, 232, 335, 385
Butomus umbellatus, 537
Butterflies at high altitudes, 509, 583
Buttneria, 379
Button, Mr., 172
Byronia, 371
Cacao, 489
Cacti, 471, 485, 560
Cæsalpinia, general account of Pacific species, 183-97
Cæsalpinia bonduc, buoyancy of seeds, 21, 192-5, 529; structures concerned with seed-buoyancy, 106, 191-2; dispersal by currents, 189; distribution, 186, 563; station and extension inland, 49, 186-7
Cæsalpinia bonducella, buoyancy of seeds, 21, 192-5, 529, 530-1, 552; structures concerned with seed-buoyancy, 106, 111, 191-2; dispersal by currents, 57, 189, 430, 562, 563; in beach-drift, 189, 430, 437-8, 558; dispersal by birds, 57, 188, 511, 581; station and extension inland, 42, 59, 186-8, 551, 552-4, 559; germination, 191; distribution, 68, 186, 563; suggested relation to C. bonduc, 573
Cæsalpinia nuga, 183
Cæsalpinia, undescribed mountain species of Fiji, 184-5
Cakile maritima, 30, 35, 36, 109, =116=, 429-31, =432-3=, 536, 539, =542=, 544
Calamintha officinalis, 28, 537
Californian current, 491
Calla palustris, 537, 544
Callao, 482, 492, 496-7, 599, 601
Callitriche, 38, 537
Calonyction: see Ipomœa
Calophyllum; relation between coast and inland species, 17, 18, 120, 134, 136, 533
Calophyllum amœnum, 534
Calophyllum burmanni, 18, 136, 531
Calophyllum calaba, 534
Calophyllum inophyllum; buoyancy of fruits, 18, 529, 534, 552; structures concerned in buoyancy, 107, 113, 115, 122; fruits in beach-drift, 437, 558; station, 42, 43, 49, 52, 550, 554; its relation to inland species, 136
Calophyllum spectabile, 18, 136, 389, 531
Caltha palustris, 85, 535
Camelina sativa, 567
Campylotheca, 236-8, 240, 243-4, 533
Cananga odorata, 159, =393=, 531
Canarium, =400=, 532
Canavalia, 107, 201-2; Pacific species, =145=, 578; relation between the littoral and inland species, 20, 134, 145
Canavalia ensiformis, 145, 529, 563, 578-9, 581 (turgida)
Canavalia galeata, 20, =145-6=, 533
Canavalia sericea, 107, 145, 529, 563, =578-9=
Canavalia obtusifolia; seed-buoyancy and dispersal by currents, 19, 83, 145, 529, 562, =579=; cause of buoyancy, 107, 113; in beach-drift, 437-8, 489; station and distribution, 42, 43, 488, 498, 547, 550, 563, =578=
Candolle, A. de, 25, 62, 80, 239, 418, 562, 573
Candolle, C. de, 376
Canna indica, 532
Canthiopsis, 265
Canthium, 355
Cape-pigeon (Daption capensis), 511
Capercailzie, 282
Capparis sandwicensis (sandwichiana), 533, 553
Capsella bursa pastoris, 536, 567
Carapa, seed-buoyancy, 108, 114, 529; beach and river drift, 76, 435, 437; germination, 76, 78, 564; station, 43, 550-1; distribution, 68-9, 562
Cardamine hirsuta, 536
Cardamine pratensis, 536
Cardamine sarmentosa, 604
Cardiospermum halicacabum, 417, 605; see Additions and Corrections
Carduus, 28, 536
Carex, 37, 272, 283, 538, 540, 544
Careya, 575
Carmichael, Captain, on Tristan da Cunha, 276, 286
Carpenter, Captain, 490
Carruthersia, 265
Caryophyllaceæ; represented in the early flora of Hawaii, 261-3, 518
Caspary, R., on the dispersal of water-lilies, 512
Cassia gaudichaudii, 533
Cassia occidentalis, 533
Cassia sophora, 605
Cassowaries as seed-dispersers, 152, 160
Cassytha filiformis; fruit-buoyancy and dispersal by currents, 56, 57, 71, 106, 111, 121-2, 530, 552, 563, 569; dispersal by birds, 71, 123, 564; station and distribution, 56, 59, 67, 122, 551-2, 563; extension inland, 42, 49, 59, 121, 547, 548, 559, 569
Castillo (Drake del), on the Tahitian flora, 46, 49, 221, 231, 254, 285, 318, 347, 504, 551
Casuarina, 134, 136, 479
Casuarina equisetifolia, 42, 45, 136, 530, 548-9
Casuarina nodiflora, 136, 549
Cattle Plains of Hawaii, 208
Centranthus ruber, 536
Centropogon, 251, 259
Cerastium vulgatum, 536
Ceratophyllum, 38, =398-9=, 408, 537
Cerbera odollam, distribution, 64, 563; station, 551; extension inland, 41, 42, 49, 121, =547=, 548, 569; fruit-buoyancy and dispersal by currents, 76, 108, 114, 121, 530; in river and beach drift, 76, 435, 437
Chærophyllum sylvestre, 28, 536
Chagres River, 498
Chamisso, 367
Chancay coast (Peru), 482
Charpentiera, 263
Cheeseman, Mr., on the flora of Rarotonga, 50, 177, 208, 216, 232, 238, 256, 291, 293, 295; on Kermadec plants, 295, 420, 572; on Polynesian food-plants, 415, 420
Cheirodendron, 262, 263, 281, 343, 364, 533, =594=, 604
Chelidonium majus, 535
Chenopodium, 272, 283, 284, 537
Cherry (Cerasus) stones in beach-drift, 429, 431, 479
Chestnuts in beach-drift, 429
Chile; the coast plants and beach-drift, 431, 474-80, 596; the coast climate, 491-3, 598-601
Chloridops kona, 275
Christmas Island, 422
Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, 536, 568
Chrysanthemum segetum, 536
Chrysodium aureum, 48, 486, 498
Chrysophyllum, 362
Chrysosplenium, 536
Cicuta virosa, 28, 536
Citrus aurantium, 125, 532
Citrus decumana, 125, 126, 532, 533
Citrus, other species, 125, 436, 532
Cladium mariscus, 537
Clarke, Mr. C. B., on Cyrtandra, 316
Cleome, 362
Clermontia, 252-6, 258-9, 533
Clerodendron, 17, 121
Clerodendron inerme, 47, 76, 108, 114, 435, 530, 551, 563
Climate and currents, 491-5, 500, 597-601
Clouds, altitude of, on mountains; on the Owen Stanley Range, 215; observations on the summit of Mauna Loa, 584; on the Chilian and Peruvian sea-borders, 492, 494
Coast and inland species of a genus, relation of, 16, 27, 133-169
Cocculus, 362
Cochlearia officinalis, 33, 536, 540
Coco-de-mer, 61
Coco-nut palm (Cocos nucifera), 67, 108, 413, 530, 552, 553-4, 563; effective dispersal by currents, 436; viviparous, 472
Coix lachryma, 532
Collomia, 568
Colobanthus, 263
Colocasia antiquorum, 412
Colon; shore-plants, 498
Colubrina, 134, =137=
Colubrina asiatica; station and distribution, 137, 552, 556, 562-4; inland extension, 49, 547; seed-buoyancy and dispersal by currents, 56, 57, 105, =137=, 529; river and beach drift, 436, 559
Colubrina oppositifolia, 137, 533-4, 576
Columbæ, extinct; of the Mascarene Islands, 152, 157, 159, 169, 200, 517
Comins, Rev. R. B., 379
Commelina nudiflora (syn. pacifica), 533, 605
Commersonia echinata (syn. platyphylla), 532, 548
Commersonia, 376, 380
Compositæ, age of, 9, 231-49, 304, 306, 503, 514, 517-20; endemic Hawaiian and Tahitian genera, 236, 248; arborescent, 235-49; dispersal by birds, 241, 593, 605; fruit-buoyancy of British species, 536
Coniferæ, age of, 303-6, 502-3, 514, 519-20; Fijian, 294, 297-306; New Zealand, 507-9, 514
Conocarpus erectus, 68, 108, 438, 498
Convolvulaceæ, seed-buoyancy, 28, 110, 117, 544; abortive germination of floating seeds, 76, 79, 83, 85, 87
Convolvulus arvensis, 28, 110, 537, 544
Convolvulus sepium; station, 29; distribution, 417-8, 573; seeding in England, 539; buoyancy of seeds, 26, 29, 106, 110, 537, 539, 544; suggested dimorphism, 573
Convolvulus soldanella; seed-buoyancy, 26, 28, 35, 36, 83, 91, 106, 110, 115, 537, 542, 566; non-germination in sea-water, 35, 544, 546; seeds in beach-drift, 31, 429-31; dispersal by currents, 432-3; distribution, 131, 433, 476-9, 542, 572; suggested dimorphism, 573
Convolvulus tricolor; germination in sea-water, 546
Conway, Sir Martin, 241
Coprosma, 270-2, 274-5, 290-3, =294-6=, 305, 315, 321, 331, 533
Corals on the coasts of Chile and Peru, 496-7, 601
Cordia, 17, 121, 134, 137, 485, 488
Cordia aspera, 137
Cordia subcordata; station and distribution, 52, 551-2, 555, 563; fruit-buoyancy, 79, 108, 114, 530-1; sea and beach-drift, 79, 437; becoming extinct in Hawaii, 578
Cordyline, 420, 532
Coreopsis, 237
Coriaria, 270, 290, =291-2=, 305
Corks in beach-drift, 479
Corral (Chile), 478
Corvus tropicus, 321
Corylus avellana, 126, 429 (hazel), 431 (hazel), 537, 538, 572
Corynocarpus, 508
Cotula plumosa, 241
Cotyledon umbilicus, 417-8, 536
Couthovia, 265-6, =401=, 532
Crambe maritima, 35, 536, 542, 581
Cratægus oxyacantha, 536
Cratæva religiosa, 379
Crepis, 536
Crinum asiaticum, 530
Crithmum maritimum, 28, 35, 109, 116, 429, 433, 536, =542=, 544
Crocodile, in Fiji, 65
Crosby, Mr., 550
Croton, vivipary, 472
Cucumis acidus, 532
Cucurbita, 125, 479, 532
Cupania, 532
Curcuma longa, 548
Curlews, as seed-dispersers, 355, 356
Currents, as seed-dispersers, 4, 12, 44, 49, 57, 58, 61-75, 79-84, 179, 557, 562, 571; Gulf-stream, 4, 80, 180, 189, 430, 570, 581; currents reaching Hawaii, 58, 72-5, 557-9; Humboldt or Peruvian current, 480, 483, 490-5, 500, 597-601; see under Climate and currents
Cuscuta, 58, =366=, 537, 552, 553, 555, 559, =595=
Cyanea, 252, 254-5, 258, 604
Cyathodes, 272, =282=, 284, 285, 290-1, =292=, 305, 533, 553-4
Cyathula prostrata, 605
Cycas circinalis, 42, 109, 115, 328, 413, 530, 547, 548-9, 563
Cynometra, 108, 529, 563
Cyperaceæ, dispersal by ducks, 513; by purple water-hens, 296
Cyrtandra, 308-9, =316=, 331, 405, 520
Cyrtosperma, 413
Cytisus scoparius, 536
Dacrydium, 294, 297-8, =302=, 305-6
Dalbergia monosperma, 106, 435, 529, 551, 563
Damasonium stellatum, 537
Dammara, 294, =298=, 303-6, 532
Daption capensis (Cape-pigeon), 511
Darwin, Mr., 24, 150, 177, 347, 497, 509, 538, 539, 542, 544, 546, 568
Datura stramonium, 537
Davis, Prof., 491
Davis, Rev. S. H., 213
Dead Sea, density of, 89
Death and Evolution, 11, 523
Delissea, 252, 254-5, 258
Density of sea-water and seed-buoyancy, 88, 566
Derris uliginosa; distribution, 68, 552, 563; station, 44, 551; inland extension, 42, 547; fruit-buoyancy, 106, 111, 529, 552; river-drift, 76, 435; beach-drift, 437
Deschampsia, 272, 275
Desmodium umbellatum, 106, 529
Desmodium polycarpum, 605
Deterioration of capacity for dispersal, 262-3, 337, 350, 365, 507, 594-5
Deyeuxia, 272, 284-5
Dianella, =356=, 533
Dichrocephala latifolia, 605
Dickson, Mr., 493
Didunculus, 159, 393
Didymocarpus, 318
Differentiation of birds and plants, 505-7, 514, 520, 521-2; of climate, 470, 473, 507, 521-2
Dimorphism, suggested, in Rhizophora, 449, 465, 521; in Cæsalpinia, 573; in Convolvulus sepium and C. soldanella, 573
Dioclea, 82, 107, 113, 436, 529, 531, 563
Dioscorea, 412-4, 532
Dispersal, agencies of, 5, 61, 502; suspension, causes of, 5-9, 242-3, 365, =504=, 514, 521-2; see under Adaptation, Birds, Currents, Deterioration &c.
Dixon, Mr. C., on differentiation of birds, 505-6; on seeds in petrels, 581
Döderlein, 54
Dodo, 8, 159, 522
Dodonæa, 67, 71, 106, 333, =338=, 357, 529, 548, 554, 563
Dole, Mr., 241, 557
Dolicholobium, =394=, 603
Douglas, Mr. D., 278, 282, 586
Dove: see Pigeon
Draba verna, 536
Dracæna aurea, =367=, 533
Dracæna, vivipary in, 471
Dracocephalum, 568
Dracontomelon, =399=, 532
Dragon-flies, dispersed by winds, 510
Drepanididæ, 259, 343, 348, 504-5, 603
Drepanocarpus, 562
Drift: see Beach seed-drift, River seed-drift
Drift-timber, 58, 72, 557
Drosera, 4, 253, 270, 272, 285-8, 536
Druce, Mr., on Sea-thrifts, 34
Drupe, rubiaceous, its first appearance in the Pacific, 262
Drying-winds, 491-4
Drymispermum, 45, 133, 134, =164=, 166, 530
Dryobalanops, vivipary in, 471
Dubautia, 236-8, 240, 243-4
Ducie Island, 49, 64
Ducks, as dispersers of seeds, 241, 277, 356, =369=, =370=, 375, 399, 506, =512-3=, 514, 541
Dusolier, M., 506
Dwarfing of shore-plants growing inland, 547
Dysoxylum, 376
Easter Island, 64
Ecastaphyllum, 562
Eclipta alba, 533, 534, 605
Ecuador, climate of sea-border, 476, 483, 489-91, 493-6, 500, 597; influence of the Humboldt or Peruvian current, 490-1, 493-5, 500, 599; mangroves, 3, 77, 445, 448, 474-6, 483-90, 521, 597; beach-drift and beach-plants, 180, 488-9; temperature of the Guayaquil estuary, 77, 78, 565; drift of the Guayaquil River, 91, 435, 488-9; Santa Rosa River, 486; Machala plains, 485, 495; Santa Elena coast, 483, 490, 494, 597
Eeka, mountain in Maui, 208, 214, 253
Eggers, Baron von, on the climate and mangroves of Ecuador, 449, 450, 476, 483-4, 487, 490, 493-5, 597
Ekstam, O., on seed-dispersal in Spitzbergen and Nova Zembla, 242, 277, 282, 434, =511=, =512=
Elæocarpus, =334=, 357-8, 389, 391, 401, 507-9, 532
Elatine hydropiper, 536
Elatostema, 317, 383, 391, =405=
Electrical state of the atmosphere, 582, 588
Eleusine indica, 605
Elizabeth Island, 64
Embelia, 362-4, 409, 520
Empetrum nigrum, 511
Endemic genera and species, tables of, 232, 233, 244, 252, 255, 263, 265; see under Fiji, Hawaii, Tahiti
Endemism: see under Species
English beach-drift, 429-33; see Beach seed-drift
Entada scandens, =176=; station, 44, 48, 50, =177=, 182; distribution, 68, =177-9=, 182, 200, 499, 500, 551, 563; dispersed by currents, =179-80=, 182; seed-buoyancy, 82, 94, 106, 111, =181-3=, 529, 531; river and beach drift, =180=, 430, 435, 437-8, 488-9, 499
Epilobium, 471, 536, 603
Epiphytic plants, 281 (Vaccinium); 291 (Weinmannia); 343 (Myoporum and Vaccinium); 383 (Loranthus); 402 (Myrmecodia)
Eranthemum, 532
Eriophorum, 537
Erodium maritimum, 33
Eryngium maritimum, 28, 35, 536, 539, =543=, 544, 581
Erythrina; general discussion of the genus, =577=; relation between coast and inland species, 19, 134, =141=; seed-buoyancy, 107; seeds in river and beach drift, 435, 437-8, 489
Erythrina indica, 19, 107, =141-4=, 529, 562, =577=
Erythrina monosperma, 20, =141-4=, 200, 533, 553-4, 578
Erythrina ovalifolia, 107, 577
Erythrina aurantiaca, 144
Erythrina vespertilio, 144
Estuaries, temperature of tropical, 78, 564
Etna, shadow of, 586
Eucalyptus, 479
Eugenia, 61, 134, =163=, 166, 334, =349=, 357, 507, 532, 603
Eugenia brackenridgei, 351
Eugenia corynocarpa, 350, 351, 532
Eugenia grandis, 163
Eugenia malaccensis, 349, 532
Eugenia monticola, 351
Eugenia neurocalyx, 350, 351
Eugenia rariflora, 164, 349-52, 532
Eugenia richii, 45, =164=, 350, 529
Eugenia rivularis, 350, 532
Euonymus europæus, 536
Eupatorium cannabinum, 536
Euphorbia, 29, 478, 537
Euphorbia amygdaloides, 537, 605
Euphorbia atoto, 106, 530
Euphorbia cordata, 556
Euphorbia helioscopia, 29, 537
Euphorbia paralias, 29, 31, 35, 109, =116=, 429, 431-3, 537, =543=, 544
Euphorbia peplus, 537
Euphorbia segetalis, 537, 605
Eurya, 371-3
Euxolus caudatus, 605
Everett, Mr., 388
Evolution, 11, 227, 522; see under Adaptation, Natural Selection, and Species
Excæcaria agallocha, 43, 109, 436, 530, 551, 563
Exocarpus, 271, 274-5
Fagræa berteriana, 42, 45, =385=, 532, 548, 603
Fagus, 508
Fanning Island, 377
Fernando Noronha, its flora and its birds, 8, 144, 366, 388
Ferns, =220-30=, 509, 517, 592, 593
Ficus, 61, 377, =387=, 395, =504=, 532
Fiji, the climate, 209, 215-8; the seed-drift of rivers and beaches, 435-6; the “talasinga” plains, 42, 43, 215, 386, 547, =548=, 569; area and altitudes, 207-8
Fijian flora, the littoral plants, 13, 40, 528-30, 550-1; ferns and lycopods, 220-30, 592; endemic genera and endemic species, 231-5, 264-6; mountain plants, 269, 293-7, 305; conifers, 297-306 The age of Malayan plants comprising first the genera widely dispersed over the Pacific, 307-58; and then those that are locally dispersed, 359, 360; the last comprising Fijian genera found in Hawaii and not in Tahiti, 359, 371-4; Fijian genera found in Tahiti and not in Hawaii, 359, 380-8; and genera found in Fiji, but neither in Hawaii nor in Tahiti, 360, 399-408 ... The number of Fijian flowering plants, 528, 592 ... The Fijian “difficulty,” 155, 166, 169, 517 ... The buoyancy of the seeds of inland plants, 531
Fish in the Humboldt current, 600
Fitchia, 236, 237-8, 240, 245, 248
Fleurya interrupta, 605
Flying-foxes: see Bats
Focke, W. O., on the dispersal of Leguminosæ, 150, 417
Fogs on the Chilian and Peruvian coasts, 475, 481, 490, 492-3, 600
Forbes, Dr. H. O., 304, 347, 388
Forster on the “Antarctic” flora, 271
Fragaria chilensis, 4, 270, 272, 285, 287-8
Fragaria vesca, 536
Francolins at high altitudes, 241
Franseria, 131, 431, 478-9, 597
Freycinetia, 308-9, =319=, 331, 504-5, 509-10
Frigate-birds (Fregata), as seed-dispersers, 188, 511
Fritillaria meleagris, 537
Fruits “difficult” or “impossible” from the standpoint of dispersal, 262, 267, 372-3, 379, 388-9, 391, 409; see under the Fijian flora and the Hawaiian flora Fruit-pigeons (Carpophaga, &c.), seeds and fruits eaten by them, limit of size, 337, 381, 389, 400-1, 410; Achras, 373; Areca, 330; Cananga, 393; Canarium, 372, 400; Cassytha, 123, 564; Coriaria, 292; Corynocarpus, 508; Couthovia, 266, 401; Dracontomelon, 372, 400; Elæocarpus, 337, 372, 508; Eugenia, 350; Ficus, 388, 504; Gnetum, 404; Kentia, 330; Litsea, 508; Myristica, 403; Olea, 508; Oncocarpus, 266; Phyllanthus, 326; Pisonia, 347; Plectronia, 355; Podocarpus, 301, 508; Premna, 561; Psychotria, 314; Sapota, 373; Sideroxylon, 373; Spondias, 602; Vitex, 564; Ximenia, 113. (For additional note on Litsea and Vitex, see Additions and Corrections)
Fruits, fleshy, 101
Fulmar-petrel, 581
Galapagos Islands, flora and avifauna, 505
Galeopsis tetrahit, 28, 537
Galium aparine, 27, 536, 539
Galium mollugo, 536
Galium palustre, 27, 536
Garcinia, 575
Gardenia, 308-9, =311=, 532-3, 548, 552
Garuas, 475, 481, 600
Gätke, H., 151, 506, 593
Gaudichaud, 385, 434
Gay, C., on Chilian plants, 477-8
Geese, as seed-dispersers, 241, 275, 283, 356, 511-2, 514
Geissois, 343, =393=, 510, 532
Geniostoma, 384
Geological time, 502, 520
Geophila reniformis, 417, 532, 605
Geranium, 4, 269, 272, 274-5
Germination, of floating seeds, 76; its connection with vivipary, 78, 84, 87, 191, 468, 521; effect of previous immersion in sea-water on the germinating capacity of seeds in soil, 25, 539; germination in sea-water in temperate latitudes, 35, 544; germination in sea-water in tropical latitudes, 79-87; the process in Cæsalpinia, 191, and in Cuscuta, 595
Giffard, Mr., 212
Gilia, 568
Gill, Rev. Wyatt, 48
Gizzard-stones in birds, 159
Glacial epoch, 503, 509, 513
Glaucium luteum, 35, 90, 536, 539, 543 544
Glaux maritima, 34, 36, 537, 541
Gleichenia, 548
Gnetum, 391, =404=, 532
Goats as seed-dispersers, 554, 558
Goebel, K., 453; on vivipary, 469-72
Gossypium, 352, 533
Gossypium tomentosum, 58-9, 529, 533, 552, 556
Gouania, 371-3
Gouldia, 262-3
Goura pigeon, 8, 159, 392
Gourds dispersed by currents, 125, 570
Græffea, 265
Grape-seeds in beach-drift, 429
Gray, Asa, 34
Grewia, 381, 382, 532
Grindon, Mr., 603
Grouse-family as seed-dispersers: see Tetraonidæ
Guavas, 554
Guayas or Guayaquil river and estuary: see under Ecuador
Guettarda, relation between coast and inland species, 17, 121, 134, =162=, 166, 532, 533; germination, 79, 132
Guettarda speciosa, station at coast, 43, 551; station inland, 162; distribution, 64, 68, 563; buoyancy of fruits and their dispersal by currents, 55-6, 108, 114, 163, 529; beach-drift, 163, 437
Guilandina (synonym of Cæsalpinia), 188, 562
Gulf-stream drift: see under Currents
Gulls (Laridæ) as seed-dispersers, 241, 511, 514
Gum-resins, native names of, 300
Gunnera, 269, 271, 272, 274, 275
Gunnerus, 570
Gyrocarpus jacquini, 2, 49, 68, 106, 111, =422=, 428, 529, 551, 563
Haberlandt, G., on the germination of mangroves, 453, 457, 465
Haleakala, 208
Hall, Mr. W. L., on the forests of Hawaii, 213
Halophily, 581
Hamilton, Mr., on the crop-stones of the moa, 159
Hann, Prof., on mountain climates, 582
Haplopetalon, 264, 265
Haplostachys, 263, 594
Hawaiian islands; area and altitude, 207-8; climate, 209-15, 217-8, 582-92; temperature and relative humidity, 209-11, 218; rainfall, 212-15, 218; meteorology of the summit of Mauna Loa, 582-92
Hawaiian flora; littoral plants, 15, 51, 71, 552, 553-7; beach-drift, 58, 557; ferns and lycopods, 220-30, 517, 592, 593; the eras of the flowering plants, 234-5, 517; tables of endemic genera and endemic species, 232, 233, 244, 252, 263; the age of Compositæ, 235-49; the age of the Lobeliaceæ, 250-60, 266-7, 603; the endemic genera belonging neither to the Compositæ nor to the Lobeliaceæ, 261-4, 594; mountain flora, 269-88, 518 The age of Malayan genera, 307-78; the Malayan genera widely dispersed in the Pacific, 307-58; the Malayan genera locally dispersed, 359-69; the residual genera (found only in Hawaii), 359, 361; the genera occurring in Hawaii and Tahiti but not in Fiji, 359, 370; the genera occurring in Hawaii and Fiji but not in Tahiti, 359, 371; the absentees from Hawaii, 359, 375 American plants in Hawaii, 261, 334, 362, 372, 409, 517-8. They include the following orders and genera:— Compositæ, 237, 248, 260, 518; Lobeliaceæ, 254, 260, 266, 518; Caryophyllaceæ, 261-3, 518; Sanicula, 272-3, 287; Sisyrinchium, 272-3, 287; Fragaria, 285, 288; Rubus, 273, 285; Pritchardia, 309, 326; Lythrum, 362; Perrottetia, 362; Sicyos, 362, 365; Chrysophyllum, 362; Nama, 362; Jacquemontia, 362, 365; Sphacele, 362; Phytolacca, 362, 364; Urera, 362 The Hawaiian difficulty, 140, 165, 168, 517; Hawaiian plants and birds, 505-6, 603; buoyancy of fruits and seeds of inland plants, 533-4
Haynaldia, 251
Hazel: see Corylus avellana
Hazlewood’s Fijian Dictionary, 400
Heather, 511
Hedera helix, 536
Hedley, Mr., 65, 66, 304
Hegelmaier, on Lemna, 408
Heilprin, Prof., 506
Helianthemum vulgare, 536, 567
Heliosciadium, 538
Heliotropium anomalum, 49, 56, 58, 365, 370, 528, 552, 554-7
Heliotropium curassavicum, 56, 58, 482, 552, 555, 557
Hemsley, Mr. W. B., 34, 232, 238, 301, 434, 499, 511, 530, 539, 581; on dispersal by currents, 62; on Cæsalpinia, 184; on insular Leguminosæ, 198-9; on the Pacific Compositæ, 242, 246-7; on the Pacific Lobeliaceæ, 251, 257; on Pisonia, 346; on Gnetum, 404; on ten widely spread British plants, 417; on Rhizophora mangle in the Pacific, 441; on vivipary in Dracæna, 471; on Brackenridgea, 569
Heptapleurum, 263
Heritiera littoralis, station, 43, 551; distribution, 47, 68, 375-6, 551, 562; buoyancy of fruits, 106, 112, 529; their occurrence in river-drift, 79, 435; and in beach-drift, 437
Hernandia peltata, station, 551; extension inland, 49; distribution, 54, 64, 68, 562, 563; buoyancy of fruits, 109, 115, 530; beach-drift, 437
Herpestis monnieria, 552, 557
Hesperomannia, 236-7, 243-4
Hesselman, H., on plant-dispersal, 282, 511
Hibbertia, 402, 548
Hibiscus, 21, 134, 137
Hibiscus abelmoschus, 21, 124, 532, 533
Hibiscus diversifolius, 21, 105, 529
Hibiscus esculentus, 21, 532
Hibiscus tiliaceus, station, 43, 486, 498, 551, 555-7; growing inland, 41-2, 419, 547, 557, 560; distribution, 52, 486, 498, 552, 563; seed-buoyancy, 21, 105, 529, 552; beach-drift, 437-8; river-drift, 435; sea-drift, 489; currents, 562
Hibiscus youngianus, 21, 533, 534
Hillebrand, Dr., on the Hawaiian flora; introduced littoral trees, 51; the agency of the currents, 73; the endemism of the ferns, 224-7, 593; the Compositæ, 236-47; the Lobeliaceæ, 250-5; the absence of Coniferæ, 303; on Cyrtandra, 317; other references, 231, 340, 341, 405, 557, 559, 560, 576, 578, 594, &c.
Hillebrand, Mr. W. F., 224
Hillebrandia, 263, 394
Hilo, 53, 213
Hippomane mancinella (Manchineel), 68, 109, 498
Hochstetter, 336
Holland, Mr., 478, 489, 499
Holmboe, Jens, on Silene maritima, 280
Holmes, Mr., on the Fijian rainfall, 216, 549
Honckeneya: see Arenaria peploides
Hooker, Sir J., 198, 238, 258, 271, 344, 369, 581
Horne, Mr., on the Fijian flora, 41, 172, 394, 395, 425, 549, 592
Horse-dung containing seeds transported by currents, 558
Hottonia palustris, 536
Hoya, 377
Humboldt on insects in the upper air-currents, 583
Humboldt current, 480, 483, 490-5, 500, 597-601
Hydnophytum, 402
Hydrocharis, 537
Hydrocotyle asiatica, 532, 605
Hydrocotyle verticillata, 533-4
Hydrocotyle vulgaris, 28, 536, 544
Hygrophytes, 32, 515
Hypericum, perforatum, quadrangulum, elodes, 536
Iceland; plants, 505
Ilex aquifolium, 536
Impatiens fulva, 536
Impatiens parviflora, 536
Incas; bones exposed on the Ancon plain, 497
Inocarpus edulis, 108, =421=, 435, 529, 563
Insects in the upper air-currents, 509-10, 514, 582-3
Ipomea: see Ipomœa
Ipomœa, 20, 76, 109, 134, 137, 489, 532-3, 546
Ipomœa batatas, 20, 415 (Batatas edulis), 532
Ipomœa bona nox (Calonyction speciosum), 20, 106, 110, 533, 534, 554, 558, 605
Ipomœa glaberrima (Calonyction comosperma), 20, 52, 57, 106, 110, 472, 530, 552, 555, 558, 564
Ipomœa grandiflora, 20, 106, 530, 531
Ipomœa insularis, 20, 110, 532, 533, 553, 554, 605
Ipomœa peltata, 110, 435, 472, 532
Ipomœa pentaphylla, 20, 110, 533
Ipomœa reptans, 533
Ipomœa tuberculata, 20, 110, 533, 556
Ipomœa turpethum, 20, 106, 110, 532
Ipomœa pes-capræ; seed-buoyancy, 20, 21, 83, 106, 110, 121, 530, 546, 569; dispersal by currents, 56-7, 562; seeds in river and beach drift, 435, 437-8, 489, 558-9; distribution, 56, 68, 433, 488, 498, 552, 563, 564, 572; station, 43, 551, 553-6, 560; growing inland, 21, 41, 42, 121, 547, 560, 569
Iris; home of the genus, 396
Iris fœtidissima, 24, 27, 537
Iris pseudacorus, 24, 27, 30, 430, 537, 540, 544
Isodendrion, 263
Isotoma, 255
Jacquemontia, 58, =365=, 533, 552, 553, 555-7
Jacquin, on Rhizophora mangle, 457
Jambeli Island, 488-9
Johnston, Sir H., 241, 252, 510
Jouan, H., 187
Juan Fernandez, 222, 316
Juncus, 89, 471, 537, 545, 568
Junghuhn, on the climate of the Java mountains, 211
Jussiæa villosa, 533
Kadua, 262, 263
Kandavu, 207, 208
Karsten, G., on Rhizophora, 453
Kauai, 207, 208, 214
Kauri pine, 299
Keeble, F. W., on the dispersal of Loranthus, 383
Keeling atoll, 81, 190, 510
Kerguelen, 241, 242, 276
Kermadec islands, 258, 276, 295, 420, 572
Kerner, Dr., 63, 101, 277, 408, 469, 567
Kidder, Dr., 241, 276
Kilimanjaro, 251
Kinabalu, Mount, in Borneo, 286, 295-6, 301
Kirk, T., on the forest-flora of New Zealand, 299, 347, 507
Kittlitz, on Nipa fruticans, 66
Kiwi, 522
Kleinhovia hospita, 21, 105, 376, 529, 562, =602=
Koebele, Prof., 212, 578
Kolpin-Ravn, on seed-buoyancy, 24, 38, 116, 538
Krakatoa beach-drift, &c., 180, 190, 206, 221
Krämer, Dr., 275, 283
Kurz, Mr., 577; on Scirpodendron, 406
Labiatæ; station and seed-buoyancy, 28, 537; mucosity of seeds, 567-8; Hawaiian endemic genera, 261-3, 518, 594
Lablab vulgaris, 413, 417, 605
Labordea, 262, 263
Labrador current and climate, 493
Lagenaria (bottle-gourds), dispersal by currents, 125, 570
Lagenophora, 240, 242, 270-2, 274-5, =276=, 293-4, 305, 568
Lagerheim, Prof., on the dispersal of Empetrum nigrum, 512
Lagopus: see Tetraonidæ
Laguncularia; station and distribution, 68-9, 484, 498; dispersal by currents, 77; fruit-buoyancy, 108; fruits in beach-drift, 438; in river-drift, 489; in sea-drift, 489; germination, 77-8, 469, 471
Lamium album, 28, 537
Lamium galeobdolon, 537
Lamium purpureum, 28, 537, 568
Lapsana communis, 536
Larch, 430
Lathyrus maritimus, 35, 107, 116, 430, 432, 536, =543=
Lathyrus pratensis, 536
Layard, Messrs., on birds and seeds, 143, 296, 388, 420
Leersia oryzoides, 538
Leguminosæ in littoral floras, 13, 19, 68, 76, =79-85=, 87, =107=, 111, 117, =140-51=, =170-97=, =198=, 438-9; dispersal by birds, 150, 417, 581
Lemnaceæ, =407=, 488, 537
Leontodon autumnalis, 536
Lepidium sativum, 567
Lepinia tahitensis, 378-9
Leucæna forsteri, 425, 529
Leucas decemdentata, 605
Ligustrum vulgare, 537
Limnanthemum, =396=, 537
Linaria cymbalaria, 537
Linaria vulgaris, 537
Linden, A., on Pritchardia, 326-7
Lindenia, =395=, 532, 603
Lindman, C., on the Gulf stream drift of the Scandinavian coast, 180, 430, 531
Linum, 536, 567
Lipochæta, 58, 236-7, 239, 243-4, 552-3, 556-7
Lister, Mr., 327, 356, 550
Lithospermum officinale, 537
Litsea, 508; see Additions and Corrections
Littoral plants; distribution in tropics, 68, 516, 562; causes of the buoyancy of the seeds and fruits, 104, 119, 569; long flotation experiments, 530; the littoral plants and the currents of the Pacific, 61; relation of littoral and inland species of the same genus, 130-70; the inland extension of beach plants, 34, 40, 49, 59, 121, 547-50, 559, 568, 579; Fijian shore plants, 13, 15, 40, 528, 547-50; Tahitian shore plants, 14, 47, 551; Hawaiian shore plants, 15, 51, 552-7, 559, 563; shore plants of west coast of South America, 474-88, 500, 596; shore plants of the Panama isthmus, 498; British shore plants, 33-6, 106, 107, 109, 115, 432-3, 540-4; halophily, 581
Lobelia, 252-6, 258, 272-3, 279
Lobelia dortmanna, 536
Lobeliaceæ, Age of, 250-60, 266-7, 304, 306, 517-20; arborescent, 250-60; Hawaiian, 253; Tahitian and Rarotongan, 256; affinities with American forms, 251, 267; relation between the flowers and birds, 504-5, 603; seed-buoyancy, 533; capacities of dispersal, 258
Locusts as seed-dispersers, 509
Loranthus, 377, 381, =383=
Lotus corniculatus, 536
Luffa, =426=, 472, 529, 563, 571
Lumnitzera, 43, 69, 108, 435, 437, 529, 551, 563
Luzula campestris; in Hawaii, 272, 286-8; in Tahiti, 290, 292; mucosity of the seeds and their dispersal by birds, 286, 417, 568; seed-buoyancy, 89, 537
Lychnis diurna, 536
Lycopods, 220-30, 509, 517, 592, 593
Lycopsis arvensis, 537
Lycopus europæus, 28, 37, 86, 417-8, 537, 545, 568
Lyon, Prof., on the Hawaiian rainfall, 213
Lysimachia; in Hawaii, 272, 283-5
Lysimachia thyrsiflora, 537
Lysimachia vulgaris, 536
Lythrum; in Hawaii, 362
Lythrum salicaria, 417-8, 536, 603
Maba, 371-3, 532-3
Macaranga, 381, =384=, 436, 532
Macgregor, Sir W., 215
Machala plains (Ecuador), 484-5, 495
M’Lachlan, Mr., on dragon-flies in ancient drift, 510
Magellan Straits, its shore plants, 477
Maiden, Mr., on the plants of Pitcairn Island, 345, 355, 418, 562
Malayan era of the Pacific floras, 308-9, 330-2, 333, 353, 357, 359, 519
Malva rotundifolia and sylvestris, 536
Malvaceæ, the effect of sea-water on the seeds, 544
Man in the Pacific, subject to the laws of distribution, 325, 411-2, 427
Manchineel: see Hippomane
Mandarin orange; precocious germination of its seeds, 472
Mangle chico, 445, 448-9, 498, 501
Mangle grande, 445, 448-9, 498, 501
Mangrove formation, 9, =43-4=, 47, 50, 53-5, 77, 132, =483-7= (Ecuador), =551=, 597
Marquesas, 208, 529
Marsilea, 408
Martins, Prof., on the effects of sea-water immersion on seeds, 24, 538-9, 542-4, 546
Mascarene islands; association of several species of Pandanus with extinct Columbæ, 152, 157, 169, 517; linked to the Pacific islands by Afzelia bijuga, 172; by Acacia heterophylla, 200; by Naias marina, 368; by Potamogeton, 369; by Eugenia, 351; by Sophora, 148; by Ochrosia, 153, 580; by Pandanus, 157-9
Mat-names and plant-names in Polynesia, 324, 328
Matricaria chamomilla, 536, 568
Matricaria inodora; inland form, 536, 543; maritime form, 33-4, 109, 116, 536, 540, =543=
Matricaria maritima: see under M. inodora
Maui, 207-8
Mauna Kea, 207-8, 210-4, 238, 509, 587
Mauna Loa, 207-8, 210-4, 238, 509, 587
Mauna Loa; meteorological observations on summit, 582
Mauritius: see Mascarene islands
Maxwell, Dr., on the Hawaiian rainfall, 213
Medanos, 482
Medicago; fruits frequent in beach-drift, 429, =431=, 479; buoyancy of fruits, 431, 536
Medinilla, 376
Mediterranean beach-drift, 430
Megapodes, as probable seed-dispersers, 160, 169, 200, 392
Melastoma, 376, 381, =382=, 532, 603
Melastoma denticulatum, =382=, 532, 548
Melia, 376
Meliaceæ, 376
Melica nutans, 538
Melicope, 263
Meliphagidæ (Honey-eaters), as seed-dispersers, 321, 331, 377, 388
Melochia, 376
Memecylon, 376
Mentha aquatica, 28, 537, 545
Menyanthes trifoliata, 537
Meryta, 381
Mesembryanthemum, 131, 478
Mesozoic continent in the Western Pacific, 303-6, 503, 509, 514, 519
Metrosideros, 259, 333, =341=, 357, 361, 510, 533, 549, 553, 554, 604
Meyer, Dr., 388
Mez, C., on the genus Embelia, 363
Mezoneuron, =146=, 363, 533
Micromelum, 393, 532
Miers, Mr. J., on the seed-structure of Barringtonia, 575
Millett, Mr., on the seed-buoyancy of Convolvulus soldanella, 91, 543, 566
Milner, Sir W., on seeds in petrels, 581
Mimosa pudica, 488
Mimusops kauki, 374
Miquel, on Scirpodendron, 406; on Carapa, 564
Moa, its crop-stones, 159
Mœnchia erecta, 536
Mollendo (Peru), 482, 598, 599
Momordica charantia, 532
Montia fontana, 536
Moreno Bay (Chile), its beach-drift, 480
Morinda; relation between the shore and inland species, 18, 134, =135=; inland species, 42, 45, 135, 532, 534
Morinda citrifolia; distribution, 18, 52, 552, 563; station, 551; inland extension, 49, 121, 547, 548, 553, 569; buoyancy of pyrenes, 18, 107, 112, 121, 123, 124, 529, 531, 534, 569; their occurrence in river-drift, 79, 435
Moseley, Prof., 242, 276, 286, 403, 434, 579
Mountain bananas, 412, =414=, 427
Mountain climates of the Pacific islands, 210-1, 214-5, 218, 582
Mountain ferns of the Pacific islands, 225-9, 593
Mountain floras of the Pacific islands, 268-306, 518-9
Mountain-shadows, 586
Mucosity of seeds, 102, 277, 417, 567
Mucuna (genus); abortive germination of seeds in sea-water, 76, 79-82, 202; long flotation experiments, 80, 81, 531; cause of seed-buoyancy, 106, 109, 111; dispersal by currents, 80, 81, 430; seeds in river-drift, 435, 488; in beach-drift, 430, 437-8, 489, 499
Mucuna gigantea, 44, 81, 94, 109, 115, 529, 531, 552, 554, 562, 563
Mucuna urens, 80, 106, 111, 123, 430 499, 531, 533, 534, 562, 563
Mueller, Dr. K., 224
Mueller, Baron von, 394
Musa, 412, 414
Musa ensete, 414, 436
Mussænda frondosa, 425, 532, 548
Mutations, 383
Myoporum, 271, 272, 274-5, 343, 533, 553-4
Myosotis, 37, 537
Myriophyllum, 37, 536
Myristica, 391, =402=, 532
Myrmecodia, =402=, 472, 532
Nadeaud, Dr. J., on Tahitian plants, 216, 312, 426, 578
Naias, 362, 364, =367=, 409, 520, 537, 556; see Additions and Corrections
Nama, 362
Narthecium, 537
Nasturtium, 37, 536
Nathorst, Prof., 511
Natural Selection, 105, 117, 119-29
Nature-Study, 101
Nelitris, 381, =382=, 532, 548
Nepeta cataria, 28, 537, 567, 568
Nepeta glechoma, 28, 537, 567, 568
Nephelium, 161, 532
Neraudia, 263
Nertera depressa, 270, 272, 285, =286=, 288, 290, 292-4, 296-7, 305
Nesopanax, 265
Nestor meridionalis, its vegetable food, 321, 343
New Caledonia, 298, 301-2, 341, 395-6, 420
New Zealand birds and seed-dispersal, 296, 321, 337
New Zealand flora; from the standpoint of dispersal, 507-8; its bearing on the continental theory, 508-9, 512, 514
New Zealand plants in the Pacific islands, 271-2, 287, 290, 295, 297, 305, 315, 336-8, 341, 357, 366, 503-4, 507-9
Nicobar-pigeon, as a seed-disperser, 8, 159
Nipa fruticans, 66, 68, 108, 472, 550
Nolana, 131, 431, 477, 479, 480, =596=
Norman, J. M., on Scandinavian beach-drift, 430, 432, 539, 543
Norwegian beach-drift: see Scandinavia
Nothocestrum, 262-3
Nototrichium, 262-3
Nova Zembla; plant-dispersal, 511
Nuphar luteum, 37, 89, 513, 535
Nymphæa alba, 37, 89, 513, 535
Oahu, 207-8
Oak: see Quercus
Ochrosia; relation of coast and inland species, 134, =151=; dispersal, 152-4; Schumann’s enumeration of the species, 580
Ochrosia parviflora, 49, 108, =152-4=, 530, 563, 580
Ochrosia sandwicensis, 153, 580
Ocimum basilicum, 568
Œnanthe crocata, 28, 536
Œnanthe phellandrium, 536
Oldenlandia, 605
Olea, 364, 508, 533
Oliver, Prof., 171, 178, 251
Oncocarpus, 265-6; see Additions and Corrections
Ononis arvensis, 536
Ophiorrhiza, 382, =383=, 532
Orchids; suggested dispersal of their seeds by insects, 509
Oregon drift on the Hawaiian coasts, 58, 72, 430, =557=
Oreobolus, 271, 272, 275
Oreodoxa, 489
Osmanthus, 364
Osteomeles, 353, =354=, 554
Owen Stanley range; climate of the summit, 215
Oxalis acetosella, 536
Oxalis corniculata, 349, 416, 427, 536, 604
Oxyria digyna, 512
Pachyrrhizus, 412, 413, 548
Paita (Payta), 482, 599
Palms; specific differentiation in Borneo, 504
Panama isthmus; its shore plants and seed-drift, 180, 498
Panax, 263
Pandanus, =155=, 508, 517; relation between coast and inland species, 134, =155-60=, 166, 169, 517; mode of dispersal, 157-60, 169; insular distribution, 156-7, 160, 169, 580
Pandanus odoratissimus; distribution, 52, 53, 156, 552, 563; station, 551; inland extension, 41, 42, 361, 548-9, 553-6, 560; dispersal by currents, 53, 158; buoyancy of fruits, 109, 530, 552; their occurrence in river-drift, 435, and in beach-drift, 437, 557-9; aboriginal food-plant, 413, 427
Pangerango, Mount; rate of decrease of temperature with elevation, 210
Panicum, 272, 284
Papaver, seed-buoyancy, 535
Papaya, 472
Paphia, 265
Parinarium, 108, 435, 529, 563
Parrots, as seed-dispersers, 321, 388, 420, 602
Partridges, as seed-dispersers, 284, 356, 367, 416
Pastinaca sativa, 28, 536
Peach-stones in beach-drift, 429, 431, 479
Pea-nuts in beach-drift, 479
Peale, Mr., 355
Pebble-swallowing by birds, 8, 159
Pedicularis palustris, 537
Pelagodendron, 265
Pelea, 263
Pemphis acidula; station, 42, 43, 551; distribution, 54, 68, 563; seed-buoyancy, 108, 114, 529
Penzig, Prof., on the beach-drift and flora of Krakatoa, 180, 189, 206, 571
Peperomia, 334, =348=, 357, 417, 509
Peplis portula, 536
Perkins, Mr., on birds and seeds in Hawaii, 151, 259, 275, 321, 329, 343, 348, 364, 595; on the biological connection between the birds and the arborescent Lobeliaceæ, 255, 504, 603; on the Hawaiian fauna, 505
Perrottetia, 362
Peru; littoral flora, 474-6, 481-2; on the coast climate and the Humboldt current, 490-4, 500, 598-600; corals, 496, 601
Pes-capræ formation, 550
Petrels and seed-dispersal, 242, 511, 581
Peucedanum, in Hawaii, 362, 363
Peucedanum palustre, 536
Phaethon (Tropic-bird) and plant-dispersal, 241
Phaseolus truxillensis, 605
Philippi, on the shells of Chile, 496
Phyllanthus, 309, =325=, 331, 532
Phyllostegia, 262, 263, 371, 533, 594
Physalis angulata, 605
Phytelephas, 489
Phytolacca, 362, 364
Pigeons, 356, 416, 506; see Fruit-pigeons
Pilea, 362
Pilger, R., on Podocarpus and Dacrydium, 301-2
Pimia, 265, 266
Pinguicula lusitanica, 537
Pinus sylvestris, 537
Piper, 532, 568
Pipturus, 356
Pisonia, 61, 333, =346=, 357, 568
Pistia, 435, 486-9
Pitcairn Island, 64, 345, 355, 418, 562
Pittosporum, 308, =309=, 313, 509, 532
Platydesma, 263
Plantago; on tropical mountains, 269, 270; Hawaiian species, 271-2; mode of dispersal, 276; seed-mucosity, 276, 568; seed-buoyancy, 537, 540
Plantago coronopus, 33
Plantago lanceolata, 276, 537, 568
Plantago major, 276, 537, 568
Plantago maritima, 34, 478, 537, 541, 568
Plantago media, 537
Plectronia, =355=, 533
Plectrophanes nivalis (Snow-bunting), as seed-disperser, 510, 511, 605
Pleiosmilax, 371-3, 532
Plerandra, 265
Plum-stones in beach-drift, 429, 431, 479
Poa; Hawaiian species, 272, 275
Poa aquatica, 538
Poa fluitans, 538
Podocarpus, 294, 297-8, =301=, 306, 508, 603
Polycarpon tetraphyllum, 33
Polygala vulgaris, 536
Polygonum; dispersal by birds, 356; buoyancy of fruits, 537, 543
Polygonum amphibium, 537
Polygonum aviculare, 356, 537
Polygonum convolvulus, 356, 537
Polygonum glabrum, 354, 356, 435, 487-8
Polygonum hydropiper, 37, 537
Polygonum lapathifolium, 537
Polygonum maritimum, 35, 477, 537, 543
Polygonum persicaria, 356, 537
Polygonum viviparum, 512
Polymorphous species, discussed, 33-4, 353, 357-8, 373, 381, 391, 519, 520, 522; independent of insular conditions, 363, 368, 520; noted under Elæocarpus, 335; Dodonæa, 339; Metrosideros, 341; Alyxia, 345; Alphitonia, 346; Pisonia, 346; Wikstrœmia, 348; Sicyos, 363, 365; Naias, 368; Eurya, 372; Maba, 372; Grewia, 382; Nelitris, 382; Melastoma, 382; Loranthus, 383; Geniostoma, 384; Macaranga, 384; Tabernæmontana, 385; Bischoffia, 386; Micromelum, 393; Limnanthemum, 396; Weinmannia, 291; Vaccinium, 280-1
Polynesians; their differentiation, 325, 411, 427
Polynesian food-plants, 412-4, 427
Polynesian weeds, 415, 427, 604
Polynesian plant-names, 66, 324, 328, 341, 345, 387, 398, 414, 419, 421, 424, 425, 441, 578
Polypodium, 593
Pongamia glabra, 54, 106, 202, 529, 551, 563, 581
Pontederia, 435, 486-9
Porphyrio (Purple Water-hen), as concerned in plant-dispersal, 296, 305, 321, 331
Portulaca, 532, 552, 553-5
Potamogeton, 5, 30, 38, =369=, 513, 537
Potentilla; buoyancy and station, 27
Potentilla comarum, 27, 536
Potentilla tormentilla, 27, 536
Premna; the genus in the Pacific, =560=; buoyancy and station, 19, 134, 139; cause of buoyancy of the fruits of the coast species, 107, 112, 123, 124, 530, 532, 561, 569; inland extension of the coast species, 42, 547, 548, 561, 569; distribution of the species, 561, 563; occurrence of the fruits in river-drift, 112, 435, 561; modes of dispersal, 561
Prioria copaifera, in Panama beach and river-drift, 499
Pritchardia, 124, 308, 309, =326=, 532, 533-4, 554-5
Prosopis dulcis, 557
Prunella vulgaris, 28, 417, 537, 568
Pseudomorus, 371
Psittacirostra, 321, 505
Psychotria, 308-9, =314=, 331, 391, 532, 603
Pteris aquilina, 225, 548
Pteropidæ: see Bats
Pterotropia, 262-3, 595
Ptilotus, 263
Ptychosperma, 389, 532
Puerto Bolivar (Ecuador); sojourn of the author, 476, 484-8, 494
Pumice in beach-drift, 429, 558, 601
Puna Island (Ecuador), 489, 494
Puna coast (Hawaii), 553
Quercus, 61, 90, 126, 429, 431, 537, 538, =571=
Radiola millegrana, 417, 418
Raiatea, 250, 252, 257
Raillardella, 237
Raillardia, 236-8, 240, 243-4
Ranunculaceæ, 535, 544
Ranunculus; on tropical mountains, 269, 272; Hawaiian species, 272-3; dispersal by birds, 277, 511; buoyancy of fruits, 535
Ranunculus aquatilis, 37, 535
Ranunculus repens, 37, 86, 535, 545
Ranunculus sceleratus, 37, 535, 544, 545
Ranunculus; other British species, 535
Raphanus, 33, 478, 536, 540, 596
Rarotonga; its flora, 48, 177, 291, 295, 309, 317, 320, 323, 336, 374, 419, 425, 551, 578; altitude, 208; rainfall, 216; absence of mangroves, 50; ferns, 221-2; endemic species of flowering plants, 232; the age of arborescent Compositæ and Lobeliaceæ represented by Fitchia, 237-8; and by Sclerotheca, 250, 252, 256-7; scanty representation of Tahitian mountain plants, 293; a connection with the Kermadec islands, 295
Rauwolfia, 362
Reinecke, Dr., on the Samoan flora, 19, 232, 266, 291, 317, 387, 577, 579; on Elatostema, 405
Remya, 236-7, 243-4
Rendle, Mr., on Naias, 368
Reseda luteola, 536
“Revue Scientifique,” 506
Rewa River (Fiji); seed-drift, 76, 78, =435=; temperature, 78, 564
Reynoldsia, 309, =310=, 371
Rhaphidophora, 404, 532
Rhinanthus crista galli, 537, 545
Rhizophora; general discussion, =440=, 520-1; dispersal by currents, 48, 77, 94, =458=; the “Selala” or seedless form in Fiji, 443; its representative in Ecuador, 449, 487, 521; the genus in Ecuador, 483-7; in Panama, 498-9; absence from Hawaii, 54-5, and Tahiti, 47; germination and growth of seedling, =451=, =468=, 575; river-drift, 435, 460, 499; beach-drift, 437-8, 460, 499; polyembryony, 449; distribution, 54-5, 69, 520
Rhizophora mangle; in Fiji, 43, 441, 520; in Ecuador, 484-7; in Panama, 498-9; discussed in detail in Chapter XXX
Rhizophora mucronata, 43, 68; discussed in detail in Chapter XXX
Rhus, 353, 354
Rhynchospora, 272, 283-5
Richella, 265
Ricinus communis, 142, 533, 558
Ridley, Mr. H. N., on the plants of Fernando Noronha and of the Malay peninsula, 8, 144, 162, 319, 340, 386, 603
River seed-drift; Thames, 37, 85, 91, 430; Rewa (Fiji), 76, 91, =435-6=; Guayaquil or Guayas River (Ecuador), 77, 91, 435, =488-9=; Panama isthmus, 499; germination in river-drift, 76-8, 84, 85-6, 435, 488-9
River temperature, 78, 564
Robinson, Mr. E. Kay, on the dispersal of Aster tripolium, 605
Rodriguez Island, 157, 351; see Mascarene Islands
Rœmeria hybrida, 535
Rollandia, 252, 255, 258
Rosa arvensis, 536
Roxburgh, W., on the seed-structure of Barringtonia, 575
Rubiaceæ; appearance of the order in the Pacific islands, 261, 262
Rubus, in Hawaii, 269, 272-4, 285, 533, 604
Rumex; in Hawaii, 366; modes of dispersal, 367; fruits in Thames drift, 37, 86, 430; buoyancy of the fruits of British species, 537, 545
Ruppia maritima, 371, 372, =374=, 398, 482, 537, 555
Russell, Prof., 493
Ruwenzori, Mount, 241, 251
Sachs, Prof., 100
Sadleria, 593
Sage-brush, 279
Sagina procumbens, 536
Sagittaria sagittifolia, 38, 537
Sagus vitiensis, 413
St. Helena, 8, 258
Salicornia; mode of dispersal, 482, 489, 541, 545
Salicornia herbacea, 34, 35, 537, 541, 545
Salicornia peruviana in Ecuador, 77, 484-6, 489
Salicornia; other species in Chile and Peru, 478, 482
Saline deposits of North Chile, suggested origin, 485
Salsola kali, 10, 34-6, 429, 431, 477, 479, 537, =541=
Salvia verbenaca, 28, 537, 567-8
Sambucus nigra, 536
Salvinia, 488
Samoa; altitude, 208-9; few peculiar genera, 266; proportion of peculiar species of flowering plants, 232; littoral flora, 46; mountain flora, 290, 297, 305; peculiar species of Pandanus, 156, 580, Elatostema, 405, Eugenia, 349. Amongst other genera possessing peculiar species are Gardenia, 311, Psychotria, 315, Cyrtandra, 317, Macaranga, 384, Ficus, 387
Samolus valerandi, 34, 537, 541
Samolus, in Chile, 478
Sanicula, in Hawaii, 4, 269, 270, 272, =273=, 274-5
San Lorenzo Island (Peru) in the coast-clouds, 492; decaying shells, 497
Santa Elena Point (Ecuador), its vegetation and climate, 490, 494, 597
Santa Rosa River (Ecuador), the vegetation of its banks, 486
Santalum, 272, 283-4, 285
Sapindus, 309, =325=, 332
Sapota, 373, 532
Sapotaceæ, 372-4
Sararanga, 156
Saxifraga, British species, 536
Saxifragaceæ, in Hawaii, 263
Scævola; relation between littoral and inland species, 18, 134, =135=; Hawaiian inland species, 18, 135, 533; Fijian inland species, 18, 532, 576; distribution, 67, 71, 564; modes of dispersal, 135, 564; buoyancy of fruits, 18, 135, 531-3
Scævola chamissoniana, Hawaii, 18, 533
Scævola gaudichaudii, Hawaii, 18, 533
Scævola floribunda, Fiji, 18, 532, 576
Scævola koenigii; distribution, 56, 135, 552, 563; station at coast, 18, 43, 551, 553-6, 560; extension inland, 42, 59, 121, 547, 553, 560, 569, 579; modes of dispersal, 57, 71, 552; buoyancy of fruits, 108, 114, 121, 122, 529, 531, 569; their occurrence in beach-drift, 437, 559; in river-drift, 79; variety, 579; synonymy, 71, 564
Scævola lobelia, 71
Scævola sericea, 579
Scandinavia; Sernander’s “Dispersal-biology,” 24; Atlantic or Gulf-stream drift, 180,189, =430=, 570, 601
Schenck, Dr., 512
Scheuchzeria palustris, 537
Schiedea, 262-3
Schimper, Prof.; relation between littoral and inland species of a genus and between the littoral and inland floras, 17, 19, 130-4, 534; grouping of Malayan littoral plants, 43, 550; distribution and dispersal of tropical littoral plants, 62, 69; the littoral Leguminosæ, 201, 581; structure of the buoyant seeds and fruits of tropical plants and the question of adaptation, 104, 112-5, 119-29, 569; on Rhizophora, 441, 446, 453-4, 459; the essential climatic conditions for mangrove-growth, 470; the xerophytes and hygrophytes, 32, 40; epiphytic habit of Vaccinium, 281; miscellanea, 423, 561, 571, 577, 602; letters to the author, 43, 121, 440-1, 454; his indebtedness to Prof. Schimper’s work, 63
Schizæa, 593
Schizostege, 593
Schmidt, J., on Lathyrus maritimus, 543
Schönland, S., on the Hawaiian Lobeliaceæ, 255
Schumann, K., on Ochrosia, 153, 580; on Musa, 414, 436
“Science Gossip,” 23, 277, 369, 398, 513, 567
Scilla nutans, 537
Scirpodendron costatum, 47, 108, =405=, 435, 530, 551, 552, 563
Scirpus; buoyancy of the fruits of seven British species, 537; dispersal by ducks implied in connection with the Cyperaceæ, 513
Scirpus maritimus, 34, 92, 109, 116, 537, 541
Scirpus palustris, 90, 537
Scleria; dispersal by purple water-hens, 296
Sclerotheca, 252, 256-8
Scott, J., on Indian parrots, 420
Scott-Elliot, Mr., 568
Scrophularia aquatica, 89, 537
Scrophularia nodosa, 537
Scutellaria galericulata, 28, 37, 537, 545
Scyphiphora, 109
Sea, Fijian tree, 436, 602
Sea-aster: see Aster tripolium
Sea-birds, as seed-dispersers, 188, 241, 242, 347, 506, =510-1=, 514, 605
Sea-eagle, as a seed-disperser, 286
Sea-thrifts: see Armeria
Seed-mucosity: see Mucosity
Seed-stage, regarded as an adaptation, 11, 85-7, 468, 473, 521
Seed-structure; anomalies connected with a lost viviparous habit, 79, 132, 470, 473, 521, 575
Seemann, Dr., on the Fijian flora, 172, 177, 231, 264, 421, 442, 549, 576, 577, 579, 592; on the northern limit of mangroves, 54; on Polynesian weeds, 415, 604; on Laguncularia in the Panama isthmus, 498; on willow-leaved plants, 603
Selala, the seedless Rhizophora of Fiji, 441-9, 465-6, 487, 520-1; see Rhizophora
Selliera radicans, 477
Senecio, in Hawaii, 362
Senecio aquaticus, 28, 536, 568
Senecio candidans, 477
Senecio palustris, 536
Senecio vulgaris, 536, 568
Serianthes, 108, 389, =424=, 529, 563
Sernander, Dr., on the dispersal-biology of Scandinavia, 24; on the Gulf-stream drift, 180, 189, 430, 570, 601; miscellanea, 280, 511, 538, 542-3, 571
Sesbania, 528, 555
Sesuvium zone of west coast of South America, 476, 481
Sesuvium portulacastrum; in Fiji, 529; in Tahiti, 370, 528; in Tonga, 528; in Hawaii, 375, 552, 554-5; in Ecuador, 485; in Peru, 482; seed-buoyancy, 16, 529
Shaddock (Citrus decumana), 125-6, 532-3
Shadow of mountains, 586
Sibthorpia europæa, 417, 418
Sicilian beach-drift, 430
Sicyos, 362, 363, =365=
Sideroxylon, 371-4, 507-8
Sida, 417, 427, 533, 555, 604
Siegesbeckia orientalis, 605
Silene, in Hawaii, 272, 279-80
Silene cucubalus, 536
Silene maritima, 33, 36, 280, 511, 536, 540, 544
Simpson, Mr. M.; precocious germination of the coco-nut, 472
Siphocampylus, 251
Sisyrinchium, 272, 273, 279, 533
Sium; buoyancy of the fruits of British species, 536
Smith, Mr. Jared G., 211, 213
Smyrnium olusatrum, 536
Smythea pacifica; distribution, 47, 264-5, 551, 562; buoyancy of fruits, 106, 112, 529; their occurrence in river-drift, 435
Snow-buntings (Plectrophanes nivalis), as seed-dispersers, 510-1, 605
Solanum aculeatissimum, 533
Solanum dulcamara, 537
Solanum nigrum (and var. oleraceum), 417, 537, 605
Solereder, H., 265
Solitaire, 8, 159
Solomon Islands, 351, 394, 400
Sonchus asper, 241, 605
Sonchus oleraceus, 536, 593
Sonneratia, 69, 108
Sophora; general discussion, =147=; relation between littoral and inland species, 19, 134, =147=, 165, 200; its indication in New Zealand, 508
Sophora chrysophylla, 20, =147-51=, 271-2, 278, 533, 580
Sophora tetraptera, 64, =148-9=, 271, 431, 478-9, =580=
Sophora tomentosa; distribution, 19, 54, 68, 147-8, 563; station and habit, 201-2, 551, 581; seed-buoyancy, 107, 113, 529, 531, 579; seeds in beach-drift, 437-8
Soulamea, 265
South America; observations on the littoral flora of the west coast, 474-501; see Chile, Peru, Ecuador
Sparganium, 5, 31, 430, 513, 537, 540, 545
Species, their development in the Pacific islands; the views of Hillebrand, 226-7; the effect of the greater elevation of the Hawaiian islands on the endemism (production of new species) of the ferns, 227-8; tables showing the development of new species and new genera of the flowering plants of the Pacific islands, 232-4, 252, 255, 263, 265; the polymorphism of genera, as indicated by their fecundity in species, illustrated by Cyrtandra, 317; by Elatostema, 317, 405; and by Psychotria, 315, 391; the polymorphism of species, as indicated by their great variability, 520, 522; see Polymorphous species; the question whether the relative fecundity of two genera like Psychotria and Coprosma is to be connected with difference in antiquity or with difference in their geographical position, 315, 331; the connection between endemism and the suspension of means of dispersal by birds, 5, 7, 229; endemism thus produced nearly as pronounced with certain genera like Cyrtandra, Embelia, and Naias, in continental regions as in oceanic islands, 229, 317-3, 331, 363-4, 368, 409, 520; the process concerned in endemism favoured by the deterioration of plants in their capacity for dispersal, 262-3, 337, 350, 365, 507, 594-5; biological connection between plants and birds, 504-5; differentiation of climate, bird, and plant, the bird being dependent on the climate, and the plant on the bird, 378, 410, 506-7, 514, 521-2
Spergula arvensis, 536
Spergularia rubra and S. marina, 33, 36, 536, 540, 544-5
Sphacele, 362
Spiræa ulmaria, 37, 92, 536
Spitzbergen; flora and plant dispersal, 511-2, 514
Spondias dulcis, 532
Spondias lutea, 124, 438, 489, 499
Spondias, unidentified Fijian species, 602
Spring-centres for the diffusion of aquatic plants, 396, 399
Stachys, 27, 28, 537
Stapf, Dr., on the flora of Kinabalu, 101, 296, 301
Statice, 34
Station and seed-buoyancy, 16, 24, 30, 515
Stellaria, 37, 89, 536
Stenogyne, 262-3, 594-5
Sterculia, 11, 375-6, =391=, 532-3
Sterculiaceæ, 10, 375
Straussia, 262-3, 364
Stromboli, its shadow, 586
Strongylodon, 80, =82=, 107, 113, 123, =200=, 436, 529, 531, 558, 562-3, =565=
Struthious birds, suggested as seed-dispersers, 152, 159-60
Stubbs, Dr.; Agricultural Report on Hawaii, 212, 578
Stylocoryne, 532
Suæda; concerning dispersal by birds, 511
Suæda fruticosa, 34, 480, 482, 537, 541
Suæda maritima, 34, 537, 541
Suess, Prof., on the shell-fauna of Chile, 496; on the salts of ancient seas, 566
Sula: see Boobies
Suriana maritima, 105, 528, 529, 563
Swamp-hens: see Porphyrio
Symphytum officinale, 537
Tabernæmontana, 381, =385=, 532
Tacca; relation between littoral and inland species, 19, 134, =138=
Tacca maculata, 19, 138, 532, 548
Tacca pinnatifida, =19=, =138=; distribution, 138, 552, 563; modes of dispersal, 138; seed-buoyancy, 19, 108, 530, 531, 569; station, 138; growing inland, 42, 138, 547, 548, 569; as a food-plant, 138, 412, 414, 427
Tahiti; area and altitude, 207-8; temperature, 209; rainfall, 216, 218
Tahitian flora; littoral plants, 14, =47=, 528, =529=, 551, 552; ferns and lycopods, 220-230, 592; endemic genera and endemic species of flowering plants, 231-5; the age of Compositæ, 236-40, 245, 248; and of Lobeliaceæ, 250-2, 256-8, 266; the mountain plants, 269, 290-3, 305, 518-9 The age of Malayan plants; the general dispersal of these plants in the Pacific, 307-58; the local dispersal, (a) genera common to Tahiti and Hawaii, but not found in Fiji, 359, 370; (b) genera found in Tahiti and Fiji, but not in Hawaii, 359, 380-8; (c) residual genera (found only in Tahiti), 359, 378. The absentees from Tahiti, 360, 388 American genera in Tahiti, 379, 380
Talasinga plains: see Fiji
Tamus communis, 537
Tarawau tree of Fiji: see Dracontomelon
Taraxacum, 536
Taro, 412, 415
Taubert, P., on Strongylodon, 566
Taviuni, 207-8
Taxus baccata, 537
Teesdalia, 567
Temperature: see under Beach-temperature, Estuaries, Humboldt current
Tephrosia piscatoria; in Fiji, 42, 45, 547; in Hawaii, 56, 58, 59, 552, 553-6; buoyancy of seed and pod, 529, 562; modes of dispersal, 45, 150, 417, 562
Terminalia; relation between coast and inland species, =17=, 120, 533; buoyancy, 108, 114
Terminalia katappa; distribution, 52, 54, 551, 552, 563; buoyancy of fruits, 108, 114, 529; their occurrence in beach-drift, 437, 559
Terminalia litorea or littoralis, 108, 529, 563
Tertiary submergence of the Western Pacific archipelagoes, 245, 247, 249, 260, 267, =304-5=, 306, 503, 518, 520
Tetramolopium, 236-7, 243-4
Tetraonidæ (Grouse-family), as seed-dispersers, 279, 282, 511, 514
Teucrium inflatum, 416, 605
Teucrium scorodonia, 28, 537
Thacombauia, 265
Thalictrum flavum, 535
Thames; the vegetation of the banks, 37; the seed-drift, 37-8, 85-6, 430, 539; see Additions and Corrections
Thauziès, M. A., 506
Thespesia populnea, 562; in Hawaii, 52, 552, 554-6, 558-9; in Fiji, 547, 550; seed-buoyancy, 105, 529, 530-1; beach-drift, 558-9
Thlaspi arvense, 536
Thomson, Mr. G. M., on the New Zealand flora, 508
Thomson, Dr. T., on the seed-structure of Barringtonia, 575
Thuret, M., on the buoyancy of seeds and fruits, 24, 63, 538, 542, 544, 546
Thymus, 28, 537, 568
Tibet; its flora, 34, 238
Tillandsia, 484, 486
Tonga; included in the Fijian area, 207; the littoral plants, 46; the proportion of endemic species, 232; absence of peculiar genera whether of the Compositæ or Lobeliaceæ or of any other order, 235, 266; several peculiar species of Eugenia, 349; a home for the Sapotaceæ, 374; Pritchardia pacifica thrives, 327; vegetation of the leeward plains, 550. Amongst other genera possessing peculiar species, or in other respects remarkable, are Podocarpus, 301; Pittosporum, 309; Freycinetia, 320; Elæocarpus, 335; &c.
Touchardia, 263, 594
Tournefortia argentea; distribution, 43, 64, 563; station, 42, 43, 551; buoyancy of fruits, 108, 114, 530, 531; their occurrence in beach-drift, 437
Tragopogon, fruit-buoyancy of British species, 536
Tree-Lobelias, 250-60, 266-7; see Lobeliaceæ
Treub, Dr., on the new flora of Krakatoa, 206, 221, 577
Trevesia, 309, =310=, 371
Tribulus cistoides, 56, 58, 365, 366, 552, 553-6
Trichospermum, 265, =392=, 532
Trifolium, 150, 536
Triglochin, 34, 36, 537, 541, 545
Trimenia, 265
Triplasandra, 262-3
Trisetum, 272, 275
Tristan da Cunha, 242, 276, 286, 364, 366
Triumfetta procumbens, 42, 43, 45, 529, 550
Triumfetta rhomboidea, 529
Tropic-bird (Phaethon), 241
Tropical beach-drift, 434-9; see Beach-drift
Tschudi, Dr., 493
Tupa, 251, 258
Tussilago farfara, 536, 546
Tussilago petasites, 536
Typha; seed-buoyancy, 537
Ulex europæus, 536
Ulmus campestris, 537
Umbelliferæ; station and fruit-buoyancy, 28, 537
Uncinia, 271-5
Urena lobata, 417, 427, 532, 604
Urera, 362
Urtica dioica, 537
Urticaceæ; represented in the early flora of Hawaii, 261, 263
Vaccinium, 4, 5, 269, 270, 272, 274-5, =280-2=, 290-4, 297, 305, 343
Valerianella, 536
Vallesia, 154
Valparaiso; beach-plants and beach-drift, 477-9
Vandellia crustacea, 605
Van Tieghem, on Brackenridgea, 570
Vanua Levu; area, altitude, and rainfall, 207-8, 216
Varigny, Dr. H. de, 506
Vascular cryptogams in the Pacific islands, 222, 592; see also under Ferns and Lycopods
Veitchia, 401, 532
Verbena officinalis, 537
Veronica; buoyancy of the fruits of British species, 537
Veronica beccabunga, 37, 537, 568
Vicia; in the Hawaiian mountain-flora, 272, 278
Vicia faba; dispersed by pigeons, 150, 417
Vicia sativa; seed-buoyancy, 536
Victoria Institute, 66
Vigna; relation between littoral and inland species, 134, 139
Vigna lutea; in Hawaii, 56-7, 139, 552, 554, 558-9, 560; in Fiji, 550; distribution, 68, 563; seeds dispersed by currents, 57; seed-buoyancy, 56, 106, 529; seeds in beach-drift, 437-8, 558-9; seeds in river-drift, 435, 489 (species in last case unidentified)
Viola; in Hawaiian mountain-flora, 253, 272; modes of dispersal, 277; seed-buoyancy, 533, 536; seed-mucosity, 278, 567-8
Viscum, 355, 358, 377, 536
Vitex; relation between littoral and inland species, 134, 137
Vitex trifolia; station and distribution, 50, 551-2, 563-4; growing inland, 42, 547-8, 560; dispersal by currents, 56, 57, 564; buoyancy of fruits, 108, 122, 530; their occurrence in river-drift, 435, and in beach-drift, 559; dispersal by birds, 57, 122, 564; see Additions and Corrections Variety, unifoliolata, 108, 547-8, 552, 556, 559, 560
Vitex agnus castus, 109, 431
Viti Levu, 207-8
Vivipary (germination on the plant), 78, 84-7, 132, 191, =468=, =521=, 564, 574-6; a lost habit with many plants and only indicated by anomalies in seed-structure, 79, 132, 470, 473, 521, 575
Vries, Prof. H. de, 573
Walker, Mr. F. P., 490, 495, 597
Wallace, Mr. A. R., 7, 242, 247, 259, 400
Wallis Island, 349, 551
Walsh, Canon, on the Cordyline of the Maoris, 420
Waltheria americana, 375, 416, 427, 533, 553-4, 604
Waltheria pyrolæfolia, 375
Warburg, Dr., 54; on Pandanus, 155-8, 580; on Freycinetia, 319-22, 510; on the Samoan species of Ficus, 387
Warming, E., on Rhizophora, 450, 453
Webster, Mr. H., on Ecuador, 495
Wedelia, 108, 116, 529, 551, 563
Weed, Prof., 277, 364
Weeds of Polynesia, 415, 427, 604
Weinmannia, =290-1=, 292-4, 297, 305
Whymper, Mr., on insects at great altitudes, 510, 583
Wichmann, A., on the submergence of the Western Pacific islands, 304
Wiglesworth, Mr., on Polynesian birds, 66, 296
Wikstrœmia, 45, 333, =348=, 357, 530
Wilkes, Commodore; meteorological observations on the summit of Mauna Loa, 210, 583, 585, =586=
Wilkesia, 236-7, 240, 243-4
Willow-leaved river-side plants, 395, 603
Wilson, Mr. S. B., on the vegetable food of Hawaiian birds, 151, 321
Winds; in plant-dispersal, 226, 259, 511; on the summit of Mauna Loa, 583; see Drying-winds
Wolff, Dr., on Ecuador, 476, 486, 494-5
Wolffia, found by the author in Fiji, 408
Wollastonia, 109
Woodford, Mr. C. M., 66
Xerophytes, 32, 39, 201, 515
Ximenia americana, 107, 113, 115, 122, 128, 529, 563
Yams, 412-4
Zannichellia palustris, 537
Zippelius, on Scirpodendron, 406
RICHARD CLAY AND SONS, LIMITED BREAD STREET HILL, E.C., AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK.
Transcriber’s Note
Some corrections have been made to the original text. In particular, punctuation has been normalized and ditto marks have been replaced by the text they represent. Scale bars have been added to the illustrations where a scale is indicated. Corrections listed in Additions and Corrections have been made in cases where words or phrases are to be substituted or removed. The page numbers in the Additions and Corrections have been corrected and the order has been adjusted accordingly.
Further corrections are as follows:
p. 48 seseedlings will float uninjured -> seedlings will float uninjured p. 467 in the case of Bruguiera rheedi -> in the case of Bruguiera rheedii