Mar.,"j AuDAs, A Bofauist in the Portland District: i6y 



Battery Point, the shore was decorated with many of tlic 

 beautiful white flowers of Heliohrysum Icucopsidimn and 

 Pimelca spaihiilata, the lilue of Sccevola suaveolens, and the 

 gorgeous orange-coloured blooms of Senecio lautus and Hcli- 

 chrysiim apiciilalnvi; while in sheltered situations Calystegia 

 {Convolvulus) soldanella, with its lilac-strij^ed flowers, was 

 seen. 



At the foot of Black Nose Point, and along the face of tjie 

 cliffs wherever a holding offered, Alri-plcx cinerea, Bursaria 

 spinosa, Senecio odoratus, Olearia viscosa, Coprosma hirtclla, 

 Casuarina qiiadrivalvis. Lcucopogon Richei. Acacia vcrticiUata, 

 Exocarpos cuprcssiformis, and Alyxia buxifolia flourished. 

 The latter is a tall shruli, and forms close thickets even on the 

 incline of the shore. It lias dark green, glabrous leaves 

 (whitish-yellow when young) and white sjnral flowers. 

 Mcsemhryanthemum {Bquilatcralc trailed down the cliffs, and 

 made a fine show with its fleshy and angular-shaped green 

 leaves and large rose-coloured flowers. Scrambling over the 

 ground were masses of the Bower Spinach, Tetragonia 

 implexicoma, the coastal salt -bush, Rhagodia Billardicri, and 

 the wiry trailer M uehlenbeckia adpressa, known locally as 

 Native Sarsaparilla, while the Bidgee-Widgee, Accena sanguis- 

 orha\ extended its prostrate stems over a considerable area. 

 It is virtually a weed ; its barbed fruits germinate readily, and 

 adhere to feathers of birds, and are thus spread broadcast. 

 Higher up, clumps of the Coastal Tea-tree, Leptospermum 

 Icevigatum, were passed through. 



A little further on is situated the remarkable Pebbly Beach, 

 with its mile and a half of pebbles, of which many hundred 

 tons have been taken to Broken Hill, where they are used in 

 the smelting works. Further on is Point Danger, connected 

 by a reef with Lawrence Islands, distant about two miles ; 

 ^another reef connects them with Cape Grant — a bold headland 

 — the whole formation making a great natural breakwater 

 protecting Portland Bay. These islands are the home of 

 luindreds of Penguins, Gannets, and Mutton-birds, and are 

 worthy of a trip for a fishing excursion. From here onward 

 the coast rises rapidly to about 300 feet at Cape Nelson. The 

 lightlunise there is worthy of inspection, and from it Lady 

 Julia Percy Island, off Port Fairy, can be clearly seen. Next 

 comes Shelly Beach, where many beautiful shells can be 

 obtained, and occasionally, after easterly winds, the much-prized 

 so-called Nautilus shells are beached. Hanging over steep faces 

 of the cliffs are large masses of Pttltenaa canaliculata, mixed 

 with small tufts of Poa Billardieyi, and in crevices of the bare 

 rock minute specimens of Colobanthus Billardieri are seen. 

 The latter is only recorded from the south-west, but recently 



