Cockayne. — Plants of Chatham Inland. 2(57 



thus procuring a sufficiency of water, which they store up in 

 certain tissues, or prevent escaping too quickly by special 

 modifications of the leaves. Veronica chathamica is the most 

 characteristic plant of this formation. It roots in crevices and 

 clefts of the rocks, which often contain a certain amount of 

 peat, varying in depth in some particular cases from 5 cm. to 

 6 - 3 cm. From the crevice issues a rather thick main stem, 

 from which numerous lateral very supple branches proceed, 

 trailing over the surface of the rock in all directions, or hang- 

 ing downwards over its steeper portions. The leaves in the 

 bud have the usual decussate arrangement of the Veronicas, 

 and the first two fully formed leaves are in their normal posi- 

 tion ; but all the other leaves are more or less twisted at their 

 bases, so as to bring the upper surface to the light, the shoot, 

 viewed from the back, showing only the under-surface of the 

 leaves. Even where a vertical cutting is rooted in a flower- 

 pot the newly formed shoot is plagiotropous almost from the 

 first, being bent at right angles to the parent stem, and with 

 all the leaves twisted at the base, so as to bring them into two 

 opposite lateral rows. In nature the leaves are usually some- 

 what crowded near the ends of the branches, which are quite 

 bare beiow. The leaves themselves are rather thick and 

 fleshy, pale-green in colour, and covered with numerous short 

 dowmy hairs on both surfaces and on the margin. They vary 

 considerably in size, and plants differing markedly in this 

 particular may be observed growing side by side. This varia- 

 tion seems the more remarkable, since the life-conditions to 

 which V. chathamica is exposed might well be expected to 

 have produced an invariable species. 



Geranium traversii, described at some length in the next 

 section, is also common on maritime cliffs in all parts of the 

 coast. In many places the vegetation becomes somewhat 

 luxuriant through great sheets of Mescmbryauthemum australe, 

 accompanied by smaller sheets of Salicomia australis and 

 large green patches of Apium australe hanging down and 

 covering the rock. Associated with the above are dotted 

 about plants of Chenopodium glaucum and Atriplex patula. 

 Occasionally, even in places where the sea-spray reaches at 

 times, are stunted, gnarled specimens of Olearia traversii. 



The fern Lomaria dura probably grows on the maritime 

 rocks proper, as it does, e.g., at the Bluff, in New Zealand; 

 but in Chatham Island it is especially luxuriant on the cliffs 

 bordering the Waikaua Lagoon. Its dimensions vary accord- 

 ing to the amount of soil and the moisture of its station. In 

 stations facing south on the very steep cliffs it forms colonies 

 to the exclusion of all other vegetation. The leaves of one 

 plant measured 64 cm. in length by 12cm. in breadth, and 

 it had a stem like a small tree fern, 21cm. long. Near this 



