FLORA OP THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS. 249 



been subsequeutly visited by Dr. Habel, the Hassler Expedition, Dr. 

 Wolf, Dr. Baur, 11 to 13 July, 1891, and Messrs. Snodgrass and Heller. 

 Altogether 76 flowering plants have been found on the island. Of these, 

 8 are Compositae, 7 Boraginaceae, 7 grasses, and 5 Amarantaceae. 

 Nine species and one form are peculiar to the island. Among these are 

 two species of Scalesia, and two of Bjrreria. The vegetation so far as 

 yet shown is of a more xerophytic cast than that of the other large 

 islands, although it is to be suspected that this is due to imperfect ex- 

 ploration. Perhaps the most striking feature is the entire absence of 

 ferns. The genus Croton, also, although one of the commonest and most 

 widely distributed in the Galapagos, has not been collected or reported 

 upon Indefatigable. Of the 76 plants known to occur on this island, 51 

 have been found on Chatham, 48 on Charles, and 46 on Albemarle. 



James Island. 



James is also one of the larger, higher, and more central islands. It 

 has been visited by most of the expeditions which have explored the 

 archipelago, and 153 plants have been collected upon it. Of these 19 are 

 peculiar to the island, and 56 to the archipelago. The most noteworthy 

 feature is the relative abundance of ferns, which here amount to 13 

 per cent of the whole vascular vegetation, — a striking contrast to their 

 entire absence on the adjacent Indefatigable. The nearest affinities of 

 the flora of James are with Charles, Albemarle, and Chatham. 



Jervis Island. 



Jervis Island is less than 3 km. long and of low altitude. It is but 

 9.6 km. south of James, and together with Duncan lies in a small portion 

 of the ocean to a considerable extent inclosed by James, Albemarle, and 

 Indefatigable islands. It was visited by the " Hassler," but so far 

 as I can learn, only Dr. Baur has collected plants upon this island. 

 He secured 22 different kinds, of which 2, Euphorbia viminea, forma 

 j'ervensis, and Castela galapageia, forma jervensis, are foliar forms of 

 species which in slightly different forms are rather widely distributed 

 on the islands. It is a curious fact that of the 22 plants observed on 

 this island only 9 have been found on the adjacent James Island, al- 

 though 12 have been collected upon Chatham, and no less than 15 on 

 Cliarles, both much more distant. Fourteen, or about two-thirds, of the 

 plants of Jervis are confined to the Galapagos Archipelago. 



