16 Merriam Geographic Distribution of Life. 



Peninsula of Lower California. 



That the fauna and flora of the peninsula of Lower California, 

 or any part of it, differs radically from that of the state of Cali- 

 fornia immediately on the north was pointed out almost simul- 

 taneously by Baird and Le Oonte in 1859. Baird stated that the 

 fauna of its southern extremity, as determined by collections of 

 its mammals, birds, and reptiles, " is almost identical with that 

 of the Gila River, and to a certain extent with that of the Rio 

 Grande," but differs wholly from that of Upper California. In 

 accordance with these facts he afterward (in 1866) made Lower 

 California a subdivision of the Central Province. Later in the 

 same year (1859) Le Conte stated that a few species of insects 

 from Cape St. Lucas, " though all new, indicate a greater resem- 

 blance to the fauna of the Lower Colorado than to that of mari- 

 time California ; this province may therefore be found eventually 

 to belong to the interior district." 



Cooper (in 1861) proposed the name Uchitanfoi the Forest Flora 

 of Lower California, and regarded it as a subdivision of his 

 Nevadian (= Californian) Province. Grisebach also, in mapping 

 the plant regions of the world in 1866, included the peninsula in 

 his Californian Region, but afterward (in 1872) transferred it to 

 the interior or prairie region. 



Cope, in 1873, raised Lower California to primary rank, basing 

 his action on a study of its reptiles and batrachians. Wallace, 

 in 1876, placed it in the Central Province without subdivision. 

 Packard, in 1883, followed Baird and Grisebach in regarding the 

 southern part of the peninsula as a subdivision of the Central 

 Province, while the northern part was assigned to the Pacific 

 Province. Drude. in 1884, divided it transversely in two nearly 

 equal plant areas, placing the northern half in his ' North Mexico 

 and Texas District,' and the southern half in his tropical ' Mexican 

 District.' Hartlaub and Newton, in 1886, placed the entire penin- 

 sula in their Mexican Region, and Heilprin, in 1887, in his Sonm-an 

 Transition Region. 



The way in which Lower California has been regarded by differ- 

 ent writers is shown in the following table : * 



*NoTE. In the few oases in which the peninsula luis been divided, the 

 assignment here <rivcn relates to the southern extremity. 



