26 THE PLANT WOELD 



a unique discovery, as the tree limit had been left far below on the moun- 

 tain side at about 3500 feet (Williams in Rhodora, III., p. 161, says 2200 

 feet). The majority of the plants collected on the mountain summit by 

 the writer, and marked summit plants in the list, were collected on the 

 table-land, 4500-4900 feet, along its southern edge and among the loose 

 boulders of granite already mentioned. The plants growing on the Slide 

 were gathered near the bark shack (near camp in the fig.), or between 

 this point and the table-rock mentioned above. 



Ecology of the Region. 



The region about Mount Ktaadn is a favorable one for ecological 

 study. It presents a diversified character of topography sufiicient to 

 influence the character of the vegetation. We have here rivers, lakes, 

 marshes, forests, upland mountain slopes destitute of timber, alpine 

 bogs, table lands, and wind-swept mountain summits. Accordingly, in 

 the marshes of the river and lake systems, we have a characteristic 

 hydrophytic flora consisting of Nymphaea odorata Ait., Niiphar advena 

 Ait. f., Poiamogeton natans L., Acorus Calamus L., and Iris versicolor L. 

 The river marshes, where the spatterdock and water lilies are associated 

 vrith the rushes and sedges, are frequented by the moose, caribou and 

 deer. On any morning during the summer, deer and moose may be 

 seen at the water's edge feeding on the lily pads and lush aquatic 

 plants. 



The mesophytic forest, consisting of birches, maples, spruces and 

 balsams, with occasional groups of white pine, mountain ash and larch, 

 supports beneath the shade of the dominant trees an abundant herba- 

 ceous and fungal element. The fungi noted on the tramp through the 

 woods were Amanita muscaria L., Amanita phalloides Fr., Hydnum 

 septentrionale Fr., Polystictus cinnabarinus and several species of Cla- 

 varia. Associated with these in the gloomy recesses of the forest was 

 Monotropa unifiora L., the corpse plant, a true saprophyte. Along the 

 streams grow Alnus vh^idis, Hamamelis Virginica L., Corylxis rostrata 

 Ait., and a number of willows, Salix. The forest floor supports Cornus 

 Canadensis L., Coptis tri/olia Salisb., Chiogenes serpyllifolia Salisb., 

 Hahenaria Jimhriata R. Br., Trientalis Americana Pursh,, Oxalis aceto- 

 sella L., Daliharda i^epens L,, Pyrola rotundifoUa L., var. idiginosa Gray. 

 The drier, better drained soil of the more open forest is characterized 

 by the presence of slightly xerophytic herbs, such as Epigaea repeiis L., 

 Anaphalis margaritacea Benth. & Hook., Campamda aparinoides Pursh., 

 Pyrola secunda L., and several species of the genus Vaccinium. The 

 marshy places in the woods, where the leaf detritus collects, forming 

 mucky stretches, sustain Veratrum viride Ait., Drosera rotundifoUa L., 

 Osmunda regalis L., etc. The moss-grown boulders under the trees are 



