20() NOTES OX THE FAUXA AND FLORA OF SARAWAK. 



and doubtless more are to be found, as quite recently Mr. Brooks 

 and myself brought to light thirty or forty new species, mostly 

 collected within easy distance of the capital. The peculiar genus 

 M-atonia, represented by two species only, both found in Sarawak, 

 is interesting as being practically identical with a fossil genus, 

 Laccopteris, which occurs in early Jurassic beds : another peculiar 

 genus lately discovered— and only two individual plants are 

 known — is the Megapteris, a very large Marrattiacea. 



The coriaceous type of fern, of which Pellcea Calomelanos (so 

 common in the Transvaal) is an example, is rare in Borneo : it does 

 occur, however, at high elevations. 



In the Monocotyledons, the orchids are very numerous in species ; 

 there is a fairly good development of Zingiberaceae, of Aroids of 

 Palmae (especially the rattans Dcemonorops and Calamus) and of 

 Screw pines {Pandanus and Freycinetia), but of Amaryhidaceae, 

 Liliace.'E and Iridaceae, which are abundant in South Africa, Sara- 

 wak has only very few representatives. In the Dicotyledons 

 indigenous compositae are few — one species, Vernonia arborea, is 

 a tree ; on the other hand, this order is well represented in South 

 Africa. The Asclepiads, which are abundant in South Africa, are 

 represented in Sarawak only by climbers and epiphytes such as 

 the Hoyas, Tylophoras and that remarkable genus the Dischidia 

 whose leaves in certain species are modified into pitchers within 

 which a root system is developed. The true pitcher plants. 

 Nepenthes, are abundant throughout Borneo and the species are 

 many ; in some of the mountain species the pitchers are very large 

 and of brilliant colour. 



The trees are multitudinous in species and belong to many 

 natural orders, of which the following are best represented : 

 Dipterocarpeae, Sapotaceae, Leguminoseae, and Cupuliferae ; the 

 smaller-sized trees belong to the Lauracese, Euphorbiaceae, Myris- 

 ticaceae and Apocynaceae. 



The vegetable exports of Sarawak are the following : — 

 Pepper, the product of Piper nigrum, which is not indigenous to 

 Borneo though various species of climbing Piper and of the 

 terrestrial Cuheha section are common in the jungle. Both 

 the black and the white pepper of commerce come from 

 one and the same plant, the black pepper being the whole 

 berry and white pepper the same minus its skin. 

 Rail' sago, obtained from the pith of the sago palm {Metroxylon 



rumphii). 

 Rattans, the stems of various species of Damonorops and 



Calamits. 

 Gutta-percha, obtained from various Sapotacea, more especially 



the Palaquiums. 

 Rubber, from the climbing Willughbeia ; very soon, too, Sarawak 



will export large quantities of Para rubber. 

 Gutta jeUitong. which is the sap of the Apocynaceous tree, Dyera 



costata mixed with plaster of Paris. 

 Vegetable fat, in the form of the nuts of Shorea ghysbertiana. 

 Garnbier, the dried extract from the leaves of the rubiaceous 

 creeper, Uncaria gambir. 



