Two New Zealand Botanical Reports. 141 



approximately as far south of the equator as Portland, Maine, 

 or Portland, Oregon, is north of it, but its climate is totally 

 different from that of either of those places. The rainfall of the 

 island is heavy, the annual mean for the eight years preceding 

 the date of the report being 63.64 inches. This precipitation is 

 very evenly distributed throughout the year, the normal ranging 

 from 3.37 inches to 6.47 inches per month, with an average of 

 246 rainy days in the year. Cloudy skies are also very frequent, 

 even when no rain falls. There are no extremes of heat or cold; 

 in winter only slight frosts occur at sea level, and in summer the 

 mercury rarely reaches 70° F. The island is, for the most part, 

 mountainous, culminating in Mount Anglem, 2,300 feet in height, 

 while four other summits attain an altitude exceeding 2,000 feet. 

 But even on these peaks snow lies but a short time, and the tem- 

 perature probably never falls below 15° F. There is, therefore,little 

 difference of season, either in respect to rainfall or temperature. 

 This leads to soiiie curious zonal comminglings, as where one sees 

 growing together near the sea level, alpine plants and tender, 

 cultivated Pelargoniurr.s. 



\'ery violent westerly gales are frequent, and it is this factor 

 which is the controlling one in the ecological classification of the 

 island flora, dividing it into "wind-tolerating" and "wind- 

 avoiding" plants. The irregular contour of the land surface 

 presents many different degrees of exposure to the force of the 

 wind, or of protection from it, and the plant associations vary 

 exactly in accordance therewith. The factor next in importance 

 is soil moisture; but under the climatic conditions prevailing 

 in Stewart Island, the amount of moisture retained in the soil 

 depends largely on exposure, so that the character of the plant 

 covering may be referred ultimately to surface configuration. 



The influence of animals on the flora is so slight as to be 

 negligable, nor has it been appreciably affected by the intrusion of 

 man. Stewart Island, then, presents to the New Zealand natur- 

 alist a field of surpassing attractiveness; for whereas on the larger 

 islands the flora, the fauna and the avifauna have been greatly 

 modified, and in part exterminated, by human agencies, there is 

 here preserved a bit of primeval nature, where yet exists the equil- 

 librium attained by the long processes of ages. 



While the island is largely forested there are but seven 

 species of large trees, and two of these are exceedingly rare. 



