Antarctic Plants in Polynesia 293 



absent from Africa (including Madagascar and the Mascarene 

 Islands). If there were land connections between Antarctica and 

 the surrounding continents, the African bridge certainly dates 

 far back and its existence is altogether problematic; to those who 

 do not believe in such connections, the remoteness of Africa 

 from Antarctica and the scarcity of intervening islands explains 

 why Antarctic types are so scarce in that sector. It is surprising 

 that they exist at all. 



We shall begin with a tricentric type, Astelia, a true Paleant- 

 arctic genus if there ever was one. In my sense,^" it consists of 3 

 subgenera with 7 sections and 23 species. Its present headquar- 

 ters are in New Zealand, where all subgenera and 4 of the sec- 

 tions occur, including 9 species. Two of the species extend to 

 Auckland and Campbell Islands (or it may be more correct to 

 say that the subantarctic species extend to New Zealand), and 

 I to Warikauri (Chatham). There are species clearly related to 

 the Neo-Zelandic ones in New Guinea (i), Tasmania (i), the 

 Australian alps (2, i a variety of the Tasmanian sp.), New Cale- 

 donia (i), and the Society Islands (i). A separate section is 

 formed by the 7 Polynesian species, 6 in Hawaii and i in the 

 Marquesas, all closely related to one another. Finally, one species 

 is endemic in subantarctic America, including the Falkland 

 Islands, and one in the Island of Reunion off the east coast of 

 Madagascar. Consequendy, two of the three centers are repre- 

 sented by only one species each. But this does not make them 

 less important. Each of the species forms a monotypical section. I 

 have come to the conclusion that Astelia hemichrysa of Reunion 

 represents the oldest existing type in this genus. The other mem- 

 bers of the same subgenus are in the Auckland Islands, Campbell 

 Island, New Zealand, Tasmania, Australia, New Guinea, and 

 the Society Islands. A close study of distribution details and 



