— 253 — 



the rocks, rooting and attaching itself to crevices in these. Land- 

 wards it gradually gets taller, giving shelter to a great many 

 species. Of other Cocco/o6a-species are here present Coccoloba 

 diversifolia Jacq. with broadly obovate, leathery, dark-green leaves; 

 and Coccoloba microstachya Willd., a richly and densely ramified 

 bush, of which the leaves in the most exposed localities are quite 

 small and oval scarcely more than a few centimetres long, in 

 more sheltered localities turning lanceolate and 10—12 cm. long. 



Fig. 35. Dense copse vegetation from the rocky coast on the north side of 

 St. Croix, west of Saltriver Bay. (F. B. phot.) 



By means of the exceedingly rich ramification and the close, 

 small, leathery, stiff leaves, it forms a quite compact mass through 

 which the wind cannot penetrate (cfr. fig. 35). The central part 

 of the picture is essentially this species. 



Among these larger bushes and small trees were found Bac- 

 charis dioica Vahl a little bush, with close ramification and erect 

 branches and small obovate, erect, smooth and glossy leaves, 

 Jacquinia armillaris L., Elceodendron xylocarpum DC. and Plu- 

 mieria alba L., the latter being partly leafless from February 

 to March, and with its stiff thick branches standing out in 

 the air appearing strange and different from the other vegeta- 



