578 A. K Verrill—The Bermuda Islands. 



liandia aculeata L. Box Briar; Indigo Berry. Warwick and 



Paget. (Introduced?) 

 Spiranthes tortilis Rich. Pembroke Marsh. The only native orchid 



of the Islands. 

 Paspalum distichum L. A grass found in the swamps; widely 



diffused in both hemispheres. 



Ferns, etc. : — 

 Wbodwardia Virginica Sm. Pembroke Marsh. 

 Aspidium coriaceum Sw. Devonshire Marsh. 

 JVephrodium thelypteris Des. Pembroke Marsh. 

 Equisetum JBogotense Kun. (?). Pembroke Marsh. 



c. — Sea-side Plants. 



A considerable proportion of the native plants of the Bermudas, 

 and some of the introduced ones, are true sea-shore plants, prefer- 

 ring to live within reach of the spray, or even with their roots 

 immersed in brackish water, and in some cases, like the Mangrove 

 and Black Mangrove, growing in clear sea-water. 



Many plants of this kind produce hard seeds that retain their 

 vitality after floating for weeks or months in the sea, and have thus 

 acquired a very wide distribution on all tropical coasts. 



Several that are here enumerated grow chiefly on the sand-dunes 

 near the shore and help to bind and fix the drifting sands, and are 

 thus very useful. Others grow in crevices of the exposed shore 

 cliffs and serve to somewhat relieve their rugged and barren appear- 

 ance, while a large number grow only in the salt marshes, or 

 swamps. Certain species, like the Opuntias or Prickly-pears, grow 

 equally well on the shore cliffs and on the ledges by the roadsides. 



In general, it is probable that these sea-side plants have not been 

 very much diminished by the advent of man, for they mostly occupy 

 land that cannot be cultivated or used for other purposes, aside from 

 the town and village shores. But it is probable that some of those 

 that grow on high shores have been much diminished by the pastur- 

 ing of goats and sheep, while some of the larger shrubs and tree.-, 

 like the Mangroves, have been cut away for fuel, etc. 



Some of the more conspicuous or important of these species will 

 be discussed in a later chapter, under Deforesting. The following 

 list is intended to include those native species that are particularly 

 partial to the shores, or scarcely to be found elsewhere, hut not all 

 those that may be found growing on or near the shores, nor those 



