108 OUTLINE OF PLANT (UROGRAPHY 



of trees, among which arc the oil-palm, Kigelia, and the showy 

 Spathodea. 



Above the lower forest zone, is a belt of second growth forest, 

 with many oil- and wine-palms, and at a still higher elevation 

 i< ;i mixed forest, of deciduous and evergreen species. Of the 

 latter, figs are perhaps the most characteristic, and of the decid- 

 uous trees, Erythrina excelsa is the most notable. Erythrina 

 is a genus of leguminous trees with representatives in nearly all 

 tropical regions. Most of them have extremely showy scarlet 

 flowers, which often appear while the tree is bare of leaves. E. 

 >.irelsa, as its name indicates, is a very tall tree, and blooms in 

 December. It is a common tree and overtops all its neighbors. 



Among the many shrubs and smaller trees is a composite, 

 Vernmia amygdalina, a near relative of the iron-weed of the 

 eastern United States, but becoming a small tree. Among the 

 many climbers, species of Clematis, morning glories (Ipomoea) 

 vines (Cissus) related to the grape, and some others, are not 

 entirely unfamiliar. 



The high forest extends in places to an elevation of about 

 3,000 feet, but for the most part the forest at this elevation is 

 composed of lower trees in great variety, and contains also many 

 species of shrubs, climbers, and herbaceous plants. In the gorges 

 especially, ferns become an important element in the vegeta- 

 tion, among them a tree fern (Alsophila Kamarunensis) , and 

 Marattia fraxinea, a fern with very big fronds. There is a pro- 

 fusion of terrestrial herbaceous plants, orchids, Begonias, Coleus, 

 balsams, and a graceful club-moss (Selaginelia nitens). Liver- 

 worts and mosses play a more important role than at lower 

 elevations, the trunks of trees being sometimes quite overgrown 

 with them, as well as with ferns, and several species of epiphytic 

 orchids, e. g., Angraecum, Saccolobium, are abundant. 



As at lower elevations, the clearings may support a heavy 

 growth of elephant-grass, and there are many striking herbaceous 

 plants in the more open parts of the forest. Among these may 

 be mentioned Begonias, Clerodendron, several orchids, Coleus, 

 and the foxglove-like flowers of Streptocarpus elongatus. 



Above 1,500 metres, wild coffee trees (Coffea brevipes) are 

 found, and the vegetation begins to show an infusion of northern 

 genera, Viola, Thalictrum, and others. 



