450 Transactions. — Oeoloyy, 



availed myself, therefore, gladly of the kmd offer of Professor 

 von Ettingshausen, an emment Austrian palfeontologist, who 

 has made palseo-hotauy his special study, to describe our fossil 

 flora, and to bring light into the chaos which hitherto has 

 reigned. I sent to him not only all the fossil plants collected 

 by myself in New Zealand, but Professor Parker forwarded all 

 those contained m the Dunediu University Museum, so that 

 ample material was in the hands of Professor von Ettingshausen 

 to go carefully into the whole subject. This eminent pal^eo- 

 botanist has just finished his labours, for which he had not only 

 to go repeatedly to Vienna, but had also to pay a visit to London 

 to study and compare the material there. 



His paper, illustrated with numerous plates, will appear in 

 the "Transactions" of the Imperial Academy of Science in 

 Vienna, but in the meantime he has kindly favoured me with 

 a short resume of the results of his labours, of which I hasten 

 to lay a translation before you. 



Professor von Ettingshausen states as follows : — 



" In the first instance, you will doubtless like that I should 

 place together all the localities according to the flora contaiued 

 in them :— 



" To the Trias helomj : Mt. Potts, Clent Hills (Haast Gully), 

 Malvern Hills (older series), Mataura, and Waikawa. 



" To the Cretaceous period belong : Grey Eiver, Pakawau, 

 Wangapeka. 



'' To the Tertiary period belony : Shag Point, Malvern Hills 

 (younger series), Murderer's Creek, Radcliff Gully. 



" Now some few observations on the characteristic plants of 

 each locality, and the flora in general : — 



" Mt. Potts offered only very few distinguishable plant 

 remains. However, I could recognise amongst them with 

 certainty Asplenium hochstetteri, Tirniopteris pseiido-vittata, which 

 belong also to the other Triassic beds. I found amongst them 

 also a Baiera, which confirms the age of the locality as Triassic, 

 A fragment, though rather defective, is doubtless a Tldnnfeldia, 

 which again does not militate against such a designation, which 

 however excludes older beds, like Permian for instance. 



" Clent Hills {Haast Gulhi). — These shales contain very 

 interesting plant remains, and appear to promise still a greater 

 harvest of valuable things. To the leading and characteristic 

 remains belong four species of Tccniopteris, Asplenium hochstetteri 

 and pal(f.o-darea , Palissija podocarpites and two species of Thinn- 

 J'eldia. A very peculiar Coniptopteris and an Equisetum are 

 closely allied to Triassic forms. 



''Malvern Hills (older beds). — Tceniopteris, analogous to other 

 Triassic species, Asplenium hochstetteri, Thinn/eldiu, a Podozamites, 



