VEGETATIOK OF DIEGO GARCIA. 339 



indigenous flora of Diego Garcia, except the " Lily of the Island," 

 which he was unable to preserve, from the effects of damp after 

 drying a specimen. This " Lily*^ is probably one of the common 

 maritime species of Crinum^ though Mr. Bourne was of opinion 

 that it was peculiar to the islands *. 



Prom what is known of the distribution of the plants here 

 treated as indigenous, they may have all reached the islands by 

 natural means, such as oceanic currents and birds ; yet it is also 

 possible that some of them may have been intentionally or unin- 

 tentionally introduced by man. Mr. Bourne states that he was 

 careful not to collect evidently introduced plants ; but the fol- 

 lowing collected by him can only be classed as such : — Gossypium 

 barbadensey Linn., Triphasia trifoliatay DC, Passiflora suberosa, 

 Ttmn.yAsclepias curassavicaj Linn., Capsicmnfrufescens^ Linn., and 

 Rivina Icevisy Linn. ; hence they were not included in the table. 



It would unduly lengthen this sketch to enter into details re- 

 specting the diffusion of each species of the native plants ; yet 

 I may be permitted to add that full particulars on this point for 

 nearly all of them are given in the Botany of the ' Challenger ' 

 Expedition. Not one species is restricted even to the islands of 

 the Indian Ocean; thus Ochrosialorlonicaj which, more than any 

 other, is characteristic of the region, is also found in the tidal 

 forests of Ceylon, the Andaman Islands, and Singapore. It has, 

 however, been proved that the seeds of most of them are un- 

 injured by long immersion in the sea that they are often cast 



'mi 



wide 



from these causes, but they flourish equally well beyond the 



immediate influence of the sea- 

 Mr. Bourne collected a few cellular Cryptogams, including 



some new forms, descriptions of which are appended. 



Mrs CI. 



Caltmperes (§ HropniLi^fA) Garcij;, Mitt., n. sp. 

 *' Csespitosum, humile ; folia supra basin erectam pallidam 

 obovatam, margine superiore crenulatam, intus cellulis pellucidis 



Since writing the foregoing, I have seen a young plant of a Crinum raisecl 

 .w f-r^r.. a^^rl cpnf tliither bv Sir John Kirk, who obtained it from Diego 



Garcia. 



etermme the species, 

 HildebrandtiL Vatke 



(Bot Mag. t. 6709), a native of the mountains of Johanna Island. 



