Preliminary Announcement. 



These specimens were collected while I was with an expedition from 

 the University of Montana, with the co-operation of the New York Botani- 

 cal Garden, to collect biological specimens in the Flathead and Mission 

 valleys in Flathead county, Montana. The time of collecting was about 

 seven weeks, from the middle of June to the middle of August, 1901. The 

 elevations varied between 2,600 and 7,700 feet above sea level. 



Some collecting was done on the mountains around Missoula and in 

 the valley of the Missoula river before the expedition set out. The mount- 

 ains are steep pastured slopes, with occasional outcrops of shale. They 

 are heavily wooded on the summits with Pinus ponderosa and Pseudotsuga 

 taxifolia. The valley is a fiat wooded plain, with a limestone silt soil and 

 some white alkali. 



The expedition travelled through the Missoula valley to O'Keefe can- 

 yon, then up this canyon to Evaro. The canyon is narrow and steep, with 

 a small stream running through it. It is heavily wooded. The soil is 

 scanty, with a large per cent of lime. 



From Evaro the expedition travelled down to the Jocko valley, then 

 to Selish. The valley is wide, covered with native prairie grass. From 

 there the expedition moved to Sinyaleamin lake. This body of water is 

 in a "pocket" in the Mission mountains. The country is heavily wooded 

 with Engelmann's spruce, bull (yellow) pine and cedar. The soil is 

 fine limestone silt over a glacial gravel. During the stay of five days 

 excursions were made up the mountain sides and over the low pass to the 

 south as far as the series of small ponds. 



From Sinyaleamin the expedition moved to McDougal lake, which is 

 about twenty miles to the north, in the same range. The timber here is 

 principally bull pine and Douglas spruce, and is confined principally to the 

 bottom of the valley. The mountain sides were very precipitous, covered 

 with limestone shale and brush. Owing to the position of the lake and 

 to the rainy weather, very little collecting was done except along the 

 shores of the lake. 



From McDonald lake a move was made to Mud creek, near its source 

 in the mountains, a distance of thirty miles. Tlie country is flat and 

 heavily timbered with bull pine and larch (tamarack), with some spruce. 

 The soil is deep rich clay loam. There is no appearance of alkali. At 

 this place some specimens of water-loving mosses were found. 



From Mud creek the next move was to the lower end of Flathead lake, 

 on the east shore. During the stay of five days in this region collecting 

 was done on the lake shore and well up the mountain sides. The soil 



