XIV PREFACE. 



The Flora of Palestine is in its distribution parallel with its Fauna. 

 About 3,000 species of phanerogamic plants are recorded from the dis- 

 trict. Of these my own herbarium contains about 1,400, collected by Mr. 

 B. T. Lownes, my companion in 1863-64. As might be expected, by far 

 the larger proportion consists of the common Mediterranean forms. The 

 Flora of the coast and southern highland region calls for no remark, as it 

 is simply a reproduction of the Flora of Sicily, Greece, Asia Minor, and 

 Northern Syria. Of about 250 species or varieties which have not yet 

 been noticed elsewhere, there are none which call for special remark, as 

 all are closely allied to other representative species, and the additions are 

 distributed in fair proportion among the floras of each region, coast, 

 plains, highlands ; mountains ; and Jordan valley, and deserts. Sir J. D. 

 Hooker has remarked that though a vast number of plants are common 

 to the whole country, and in no latitude is there a sharp demarcation 

 between them, yet ' there is a great and decided difference between the 

 floras of such localities as the (i) Lebanon at 5,000 feet, (2) Jerusalem, 

 and (3) Jericho ; or between (i) the tops of Lebanon, (2) of Carmel, and 

 (3) of any of the hills bordering the Jordan ; for in the first locality we 

 are most strongly reminded of Northern Europe, in the second of Spain, 

 and in the third of Western India and Persia.' For our present purpose 

 we need only consider the Flora of the Dead Sea basin, and especially of 

 its southern portion. In the little Wady Zuweirah, at the south-west 

 corner of the Dead Sea, we have collected over 160 species of plants. 

 Of these only 27 are common European forms, chiefly of very wide 

 distribution, as Tribulus terrestris, Emcx sphiosus, etc. All of these 27, 

 with one or two exceptions, also extend into North India. The remaining 

 135 species are African, scarcely any of them extending into Europe, and 

 many of them extremely local. Thirty-seven of the Ethiopian are also 

 Indian plants, chiefly belonging to the desert Flora of Scinde, and others, as 

 Cordia viyxa, though characteristic Indian plants, are equally Nubian and 

 Abyssinian. Although the Dead Sea flora bears a very strong general 

 similarity to the flora of Arabia Petreea, yet there can be no question of 

 its distinctness from the adjacent floras of the same latitude, east and 



west of it. 



A few of the plants claim especial notice. In the Jordan valley the 

 Cypcnis papyrns is locally abundant, covering many acres in the marshes 



