26 SCIENCE PROGRESS. 



Tibouchina cistoides (Melastomaceae), Begonia rotiuidifolia 

 (Begoniaceae), Hoffmannia tubifiora (Rubiaceae), Malouetia 

 retroflexa (Apocynacese), Cohimnea speciosa (Gesneraceas), 

 Peperomia cuneata and P. vincentiana (Piperaceae), Croton 

 Guildingii (Euphorbiaceae), Epidendrnm vincentinum (Or- 

 chideae) and Tillandsia megastachya (Bromeliaceae). As- 

 suming that the foregoing species are all actually confined 

 to St. Vincent, the endemic element there is greater than 

 in any other island in the chain ; but a thorough working 

 out of the materials from all the islands would probably 

 reduce this number. It would appear, too, that there is a 

 process of extinction going on, for certain plants gathered 

 in St. Vincent in the middle of the present century have 

 not been found since, either there or elsewhere. Such are 

 Spachca perforata (Malpighiaceae) and Cyathea tenera, a 

 tree fern. Of course some of these plants may be exceed- 

 ingly local and still in existence. Now, taking the whole 

 vascular flora of St. Vincent, and following the extensions 

 of the species, we find that out of the 846 inhabiting St. 

 Vincent. 565 are Continental American, most of them 

 having a wide rancre therein; but few of them extending to 

 the Old World or to Polynesia. Taking those of wider areas, 

 29 are common to Africa and America, and 133 are of 

 wider extension, many of them being almost cosmopolitan 

 in the tropics. It should be borne in mind that most of 

 the two last categories are also Continental American as 

 well as West Indian. It should also be understood that 

 all of these figures are no more than rough approximations. 

 Coming to narrower areas, or smaller extensions, 198 

 species are, so far as our present knowledge goes, restricted 

 to the West Indies, and eight others extend only into the 

 Keys of Florida. I have something more to say presently 

 concerning the tropical element in South Florida. 



There is still one more class of plants to mention, namely, 

 such as are next in degree of rarity to the endemic species, 

 occurring only in one or two other islands besides St. 

 Vincent. These plants might perhaps be appropriately 

 designated the dying out element. Examples of this class 

 are : Brownea speciosa, Combretum eriopctalnm, Cottroupita 



