75 



Locality. — Mt. Obree and main Owen Stanley 

 Range. It occurs at the upper limits of the 

 Hoop pine belt, viz., about 7,000 feet, and 

 reaches its largest dimensions at about 7,500 



foot, and continues up to 9,000 feet, but here it 



Remarks. — The aerial roots are the favorite fibre 

 used for making armlets and leglets. 



Material collected. — Leaves and flowers. 



Gramineae. 



unranly over 5 ft. 6 in. girth and 25 feet over Sacharum sp., No. 654; Deschampsia caespitosa Beauv., 



No. 503; Indt., No. 409. Indt. No. 254, 



Saccharum sp., No. 654. 



Locality. — Ramu, near the village of Cohu. 



Date.— March, 1924. 



Remarks. — This grass takes up all the marshy 

 land, and in March and April the banks of the 

 Ramu and low-lying land of the valley is white 

 with the tasselled tops of this species. 



all. 



Date.— February, 1923. 



Native names. — Eo (Laruni), Mana (Menari), 

 Dede (Ogeramnagn). 



Remarks. — A good pine timber. On Sarawaket it 

 grew a 60-ft. bole, and attained 100 feet over 

 all. It was wide branching and apt to lean 



over. 



Material collected. — Leaves, wood, bark. 



Mat 



Freycinetia sp., 



Ridl., No. 



Pandanaceae. 



No. 236; Freycinetia 

 410. 



Only one specimen 



angustissima 



Freycinetia angustissima Ridl., No. 410. 



The Mountain Freycinetia. 



s 



Locality. — Between Adai and Naro Rivers. It 

 range is extremely wide in the mountains. From 

 4,500 feet to 10,300 feet, and all over the Owen 



Stanley Range between those heights. 

 Date. — February, 1923. 

 Remarks. — Probably extends higher, but 10,300 



feet is as high as I have been as yet. 

 Material collected. — Leaves and fruits. 



Freycinetia sp., No. 236. 



climber attaining 



30 



inches diameter. 



or 40 feet. Stem up to 

 Sends down aerial roots 



from all parts of stem. 



Leaves. — Simple, alternate, I ranked. Sessile. 

 Base of leaf encloses stem. Blade, 6 inches to 



Deschampsia caespitosa Beauv., No. 503. 



Grass. 



Locality.— Sarawaket, 7,000 to 13,500 feet. 



Remarks. — It covers the summit of the Finisterre 

 Range, and clothes the valleys at elevations as 

 low as 7,000 feet. Its rhizomes stand out from 

 the ground black and branched. It is annually 

 burnt by hunting parties of natives. 



Material collected. — Leaves, stem, and roots. 



Indt., No. 409. 



Bamboo of mountains. Stem up to 1 inch dia- 

 meter. 



Locality. — Between Adai and Naro Rivers, but it 

 is to be found everywhere, from 3,000 feet to 

 the very top of the Owen Stanley Range. 



Date.— February, 1923. 



Remarks. — It is the most provoking barrier to 

 climbing the mountains. It forms quite dense 

 thickets, and is hard to slash. 



Material collected. — Leaves and flowers. 



12 inches by 1^ inches to 1\ inches. Linear, acu- ^ Q 254 



minate. Margin and midribs armed with for- 

 ward pointed spines for a distance of 1$ inches 

 from base of leaf. Marginal spines wear down, 

 leaving only 1 inch at tip spiney, but spines 

 on midrib and on margin at base persist. Ap- 

 parently an aid to climbing. Coriaceous, paral- 

 lel veined. Dark green, shiny above ; pale green 

 below. The branches are pendulous and appa- 

 rently monopodia 1 and are armed at nodes with 



strong curved spines ^ inch. 



Flowers. — Unisexual ; only male flowers seen. Ap- 

 parently infra axillary, possibly burst through 



This plant germinates on the upturned roots of 

 sisum. It makes a very large mass of roots, 

 apparently quite out of proportion to the size 

 of the aerial part of the plant. These root 



masses, with the 



sedge 



growing 



float. 



The 



ji inch 





leaf axils, and are really axillary. Male flower : 

 acyclic, abouti 37 bracts arranged in 

 philotaxy. The basal ones are similar to young 



leaves, green and armed on margin and tip with 

 spines. The older ones, viz., those higher up, 

 are carmen coloured, the marginal spines are 

 greatly reduced or are absent, and the point of 

 the bract is green and mucronate. The highest 

 of all have no marginal spines, and the apical 

 spines are reduced and are no longer prominent, 



of the same colour — carmen — as the 



4 inches by 2^ inches, tri- 



and are 



rest of the bract, 

 angular, apiculate, parallel veined, coriaceous. 

 A 3-in. synandria, each 3 inches long. Lower 



3 inch dia- 



specific gravity of the whole is very nearly that 

 of water, just sufficiently less to enable the mass 

 to float and carry not only its own shoots, but 

 other vegetation, viz., 250 Nymphaea, and 255 

 Dryopteris. On pulling the root masses to pieces 

 they are found to be full of humus and air. 



Locality. — Embi Lake. 



Date. — August. 



Remarks. — This sedge seems to be the most im- 

 portant factor in the formation of these floating 

 islands. 



Material collected. — Whole plant, 



■ 

 > 



Palmae. 



Calamus sp., No. 395; Calyptrocalyx sp., No. 312; 



Arenga graeilicaulis Bail., No. 313; Caryota 

 sp., No. 314; Indt., No. 315; Livistona sp., No, 



16 



half white, oval section £ inch by 



meter, bearing stamens. Filaments green, 



inch. Anthers yellow, dorsifixed, ^\ inch. 



* 



Locality. 



:V11 through Bain forests from sea-level 



to 6,000 feet or beginning of Moss forests. 



Date. — Flowers in Hydrographer's 



Range 



m 



August. 



Native name. — Anderi (Buna). 

 F.12389.— 6 



332; Indt., No. 400; Indt., No. 311. 



Arenga graeilicaulis Bail., No. 313. 



A medium palm, 25 feet tall, with a 5J inch 



diameter. 

 Fruit. — On stout stiff spikes, 2 feet long and ^ inch 



thick, arising from a very stout main stalk. 



Round, pale pink and white, $- inch diameter, 



containing three very dark brown flattened-on- 



one-side seeds. 

 Wood. — Pale pink, traversed by very dark brown 



or black fibres. 



