Page:Journal of botany, British and foreign, Volume 34 (1896).djvu/435

 THE CHARACE^ OF AMERICA. 405 they reach into the northern parts of the Central Eremian region. Cassia eremophila and Eucalyptus microtheca, which are very charac- teristic of the central region, are largely replaced in the northern one by C.lphyllodinea and E. rostrata respectively. The lowland vegetation of the Larapintine region, comprising that of the river banks, the loamy plains, and sandy ground, consists in a greater part of species widely diffused throughout the Eremian region, extending far south in South Australia, eastward into New South Wales and South-west Queensland, and westward to the shores of Mid-western Australia. It offers considerable similarity to that of Sharks Bay, as enumerated by Baron F. von Mueller {Pari. Report, Perth, 1883) ; thus of a total of 332 species, deducting therefrom ten which are maritime, 187, or 60 %, are constituents of the flora of the Finke Basin. The orders Zygophyllacea, MalvacecB, Salso- lacea, Leguminosce, MyoporinecB, and GraminecB, which are most largely represented, have few species which are not common to the two areas. The aggressive nature of the alien plants is ex- hibited not only by their extensive distribution, but also by their ability to adapt themselves to extremes of soil and climate. Such species, among others, as Tribulus terrestris, Cleome viscosa, Mal- vastrum spicatum, Boerhaavia diffusa, Salsola Kali, Mollugo hirta, and Pollichia zeylayiica, range from the river-banks and the loamy plains to the sandhills. Prof. Tate states he cannot write of a mountain flora because the number of actual species on the table-lands and other high-level tracts is absolutely few. The exploration of Station Kange, 2179 ft. above sea-level, yielded only nineteen species, and equally poor results attended the ascents of other elevations ; Mount Sonder (4497 ft.), the highest elevation ex- plored, yielded rather more species. An analysis of the 614 species constituting the Larapintine Flora as at present known gives the following results : — I. Exotic species, chiefly oriental, 125 ; II. Endemic species of exotic genera, 219 ; III. Endemic species of Australian genera, 270 ; Total, 614. E. G. B. The Characem of America, Partii. Fasc. 8. ByDr. T.F.Allen: 1896. The new part of Dr. Allen's account of the American Characece contains descriptions and figures of ten species of Nitella, of which two are described as new — N. Leibergi and N. transilis. The notice- able feature of this part is the introduction of etchings for the illustrations, some of them very well done and others very inferior. This process is certainly the most satisfactory of the various methods of illustration adopted by Dr. Allen, and we hope that he will continue it. The letterpress again contains an unreasonable number of "printer's errors." H. & J. Geoves.