THE PALAEOTROPIO 243 



trees are in general the same types as in western Malaya, but 

 the Dipterocarps are very much less developed, while in the drier 

 regions of the south coast, the vegetation is decidedly Australian. 

 Here there are open savannas, with coarse gras- s 3 e. g., Imperata 

 arundinacea, Anthisteria, Andropogon, Pennisetum, etc., while 

 the trees and shrubs are for the most part the same as those on the 

 Australian mainland. Such distinctly Australian genera as Eu- 

 calyptus, Acacia, and various Proteaceae, comprise most of the 

 trees and shrubs of this savanna flora. 



This region is separated from the York Peninsula, the noil hern- 

 most extension of Australia by less than 110 miles of water, and 

 the very shallow sea which now separates Papua and Australia. 

 as well as the great similarity in the animal life, indicates that the 

 separation of the two regions is of comparatively recent date. 



North Australia 



Northern Australia lies well within the tropics and North 

 Queensland has a genuine tropical flora, largely of Malayan 

 origin. The northeast coast, which has a heavy rainfall, was 

 visited by the writer in July, 1921. 



The neighborhood of Cairns, the principal port, is flat and 

 sandy, with a mixture of Australian and Malayan types, Euca- 

 lyptus trees being associated with species of Ficus, Pandanus. 

 and other Malayan types. Where streams enter the sea, there 

 is a mangrove formation of the same sort as that in the Malay 

 Archipelago. 



South of Cairns lies the Bellenden-Ker range, the highest 

 mountains in Queensland, and in this neighborhood is the wettest 

 district in Australia. From a few days sojourn at Babinda, 

 which has an average yearly rainfall of 150 inches, the writer 

 can vouch for the heavy precipitation of this region. The forest 

 in the neighborhood of Babinda is a genuine rain-forest, much 

 like the lowland forests of Java or Borneo in general appear- 

 ance, except that the trees are not so large. This jungle is often 

 quite impenetrable, the trees loaded down with lianas and 

 epiphytes of various kinds, among them several species <>t' rat- 

 tans, which were only too much in evidence. Throughout the 

 Malayan region, these are the greatest hindrance to travel in 



