321 



#rigtnal Sirtide^. 



JOESCRIPTIONS OF NEW PLA.NTS FROM THE NICOBAR 

 ISLANDS (INCLUDINO A FEW FROM THE ANDAMAN 

 ISLANDS). 



By S. Kur^. 

 (Tab. 169— 17L) 



If the present communication I can hardly enter into details 

 tegarding the vegetation of the Nicobar Islands, because I have not 

 yet quite finished the naming of my collections, and also because I am in 

 hopes of receiving additional material for a more complete enumeration 

 of the plants growing on the islands. However, a few general remarks 

 may not be out of place here. 



The interest which attaches to the Nicobar vegetation rests chiefly 

 in the peculiar polycistine clay, which looks somewhat like meer- 

 schaum, and is also nearly as light and porous. This clay covers 

 large areas on those islands which form the so-called northern group; 

 It contains, according to Dr. Rink's analysis — 



Silica 72-2 



Oxide of iron . ; . ,8-3 

 Alumina . . . , . 12'3 

 Magnesia . . . r 2-1 



Water . . ; ; . 5-6 



100-5 



fiere the total absence of alkalies is very remarkable. In places it 

 becomes red from abundance of oxide of iron, and in this case it is 

 usually literally filled with fossil seaweeds. A microscopical exami- 

 nation of the rock reveals abundance of silica, fragments of polycis- 

 tines and diatoms. One would say that on such substrata nothing 

 but wretched scrub and harsh grasses could vegetate, but an exami- 

 nation of the greater part of Kamorta has taught me that luxuriant 

 tropical forests with an average height of about 80 ft. not only cover 

 the seaside, but the same forests form belts of considerable breadth 

 over the island itself, while the inner hill plateau is covered by those 

 peculiar park-like grasslands which Dr. Diedrichsen has called grass- 

 heaths. These grass-heaths consist chiefly of Sclerias (5-6 sp.), 

 Eragrostis zeylanica, Heteropogon contortus^ Eriachne chinensis, Rhyn- 

 ehospora Wallichii, Gleichenia dichotoma, Lyeopodium curvatum, M&Ia- 

 stoma malabathricum, Helicteres ohtusa, Pittosporum ferrugineum, TU 

 monius, Eugenia clavijlora (these three last reduced to shrubs), si hairy" 

 Spodiopogon and Sorghum (near S. tropicum), Fimhristylis, Imperaid] 

 N.s, roLi 4. [November, 1875."] t 



