130 DISSEMINATION OF SEEDS. 



before soft and juicy and spreading become hard and 

 woody and curl inward so that, when the fruit is ripe, 

 the plant appears like a curious ball on a short stem ; 

 most of the root dies and the fierce winds of autumn uproot 

 the dead plants and carry them to a great distance. If, in 

 its course, the ball is thrown upon a pool of water or 

 reaches a damp place, the branches unfold under the in- 

 fluence of the moisture, and the pods open and discharge 

 their seeds, it may be at a great distance from the locality 

 where the plant developed. This plant grows abundantly 

 in Palestine and niany specimens of it have been brought 

 from that country as curiosities. When placed in water, 

 these plants, although they may be many years old, absorb 

 moisture, expand, and assume the appearance of plants 

 suddenly brought to life. 



Selaginella lejridophylla, a Lycopod, native of southern 

 California and northern Mexico, has the same strange 

 habit ; hence one of its common names, resurrection plant. 

 When the ground where it grows becomes parched, it 

 curls itself into a little ball, loosens itself from the earth, 

 and is then driven over the ground by the wind. When 

 it reaches a place suited for its growth, it uncurls itself, 

 takes root, and flourishes until its new home becomes 

 parched when it seeks another locality. As it is thus 

 bodily carried from place to place, its spores are scattered 

 by the wind and it is therefore widely disseminated in the 

 reoions fitted for its growth. 



DISSEMINATION BY WHIRLWINDS, HURRICANES, ETC. 



Large quantities of leaves and other vegetable debris 

 are often carried by whirlwinds to very great heights in 

 the air and, entering strong upper currents, may be 

 carried far away before dropping to the surface. Mingled 



