FLORA OF LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 77 



In the brooks where during its lowest stage the water becomes stag- 

 nant, a large Fontinalis, F. lescurll., is found. IlymeiwcaUk occlderi- 

 talis occurs in deep clefts of rocks barely rising above the water. 

 Sagittaria latifolia^ and S. Jongirostris australis are found on the vaivy 

 banks of Ryans Creek, Cullman County, with Peltandra virglnica. 

 Orontium aqimticurn is common in the streams of the wider valle3^s 

 not above 1,000 feet. On the loose stones in the swiftly running 

 ))rooks and shallow streams Podostemon ahrotanoides^ a type of the 

 southern Alleghenie«, is not rare on the Warrior table-land, and P. 

 ct'rato/>}n/lh(in of northern distribution is known in the State, but only 

 from the vicinity of Atiburno 



Vegetation of Lookout Mountain. — Near the northern frontier of the 

 State the most easterly of the spurs of (he Appalachian ranges belong- 

 ing to this subdivision rises abruptly at Valley Head to an elevation 

 fully 800 feet above Little Wills Valley, with its floor at this point 

 1,150 feet above tide water. 



The summit of Lookout Mountain spreads out to a wide table-land 

 of the same character as the plateau of the Warrior coal field, and ter- 

 minates suddenly in the precipitous escarpment abutting upon the 

 Tennessee River known as the most prominent landmark in the Ten- 

 nessee basin. Near Mentone, Little River, a pretty stream which 

 follows the southern extension of this table-land, leaps over a ledge 

 into its narrow channel, some 125 feet below . By reason of a rainfall 

 more copious than in other sections of the mountain region (64.1: inches), 

 and toward its northern extremity of a generally deeper and fresher 

 soil, this mountain was recently covered with a fine hard-wood forest, 

 chiefly of oaks, and was noted for the abundance of white oak timber 

 {Quercus alba) and tan-bark oak; but this timber wealth is now almost 

 exhausted. On its flanks the black locust {Robinla psendacacia) is 

 found, one of the few localities in Alabama where it can be considered 

 to be indigenous. The short-leaf pine is rarely met with on these 

 heights. The scrub pine is more frequent, reaching its best develop- 

 ment on rocky benches and declivities with a scanty covering of soil. 



On the brow of this mountain, and particularly along the low, damp 

 banks of Little River, there occurs a strong mingling of tj^pes that 

 are at home in the Alleghenian area of the adjoining States and of 

 North Carolina with plants of the lower ranges within the Carolinian 

 area, giving rise to a varied flora, the like of which has not been 

 observed in any other part of the mountain region of Alabama. When 

 the low elevation of this extremel}^ limited spot is considered (not 

 quite 2,000 feet above the sea), the sufiusion of types from different 

 life zones admits of no explanation on the ground of climate or local 

 influences controlling plant distribution, but points clearly to a disjunc- 

 tion of floral conditions due to geological changes. Among the woody 

 plants peculiar to the Alleghenian area, Rlwdodendron catawhlense 



