Feb., 1908.] 



THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



153 



EXCURSION TO FRANKSTON. 



Favoured by a fine day on Saturday, 23rd November, this 

 excursion was well attended, and, in addition to the members of 

 this Club, contingents from the Training College and Ramblers' 

 Club were present, making a party of over forty. On leaving the 

 station the Hastings road was followed for a short distance, when 

 a turn was made southwards over the heath country. Special 

 attention was directed to the search for as many specimens as 

 possible of Cassytha growing on different hosts, at least twelve 

 different hosts being found. The almost total absence of intro- 

 duced plants in the ground selected for examination — many acres 

 of native heath land — was remarked. The only naturalized alien 

 found was H ypochceris radicata, L. It will be interesting to note 

 in later excursions how long the native flora holds its own without 

 change. The season was an early one, flowering being over in 

 most cases, but over thirty-six plants were found in flower and 

 identified, including Boronia parviflora, Sm. In spite of the 

 presence of the Herbarium staff and of some of our better 

 botanists from the Club, a few of the identifications proved on 

 subsequent examination to be incorrect, the correct names being 

 substituted in the following list of the more important plants 

 noticed. Except in the case of the commonest and least variable 

 plants field names must always be taken as provisional and open 

 to correction. 



Hibbertia densiflora, R. Br. 

 H. stricta, R. Br. 

 H. fasciculata, R. l^r. 

 Cassytha glabella, R. Br. 

 Drosera spathulata, Lab. 

 Comesperma ericinum, D. C. 

 C. calymega, Lab. 

 Boronia parviflora, Sm. 

 Ricinocarpus pinifolius, Deof. 

 Casuarina quadrivalvis, Lab. 

 Stackhousia linarifolia, Cunn. 

 Viminaria deniidata, Sm. 

 Dillvvynia ericifolia, Sm. 

 Acacia suaveolens, WiUd. (in 



only) 

 Leptospennum scoparium, Forst, 

 Melaleuca squarrosa, Donn. 

 Isopogon ceratophyllus, R. Br. 



fruit only) 

 Hakea nodosa, R. Br. (in 



only) 



— Alfred J. Ewart. 



fruit 



(in 

 fruit 



Hypochaeris radicata, L. (only intro- 

 duced plant found) 



Lobelia anceps, Lf. 



Utricularia dichotoma, Labill. 



U. flexuosa, Vahl. 



Leucopogon Richei, Lab. 



Styphelia australis, F. v. I\L 



Brachyloma ciliatum, Benth. 



Epacris obtusifolia, Sm. 



Sprengelia incarnata, Sm. 



Orthoceras strictum, R. Br. 



Prasophyllum elatum, R. Br. (just 

 past flowering) 



Patersonia glauca, R. Br. 



P. longiscapa, Sweet. 



Dianella longifolia, R. Br. 



Csesia parviflora, R. Br. 



Xyris gracilis, R. Br. 



Hypolaena fastigiata, R. Br. 



Lycopodium laterale, R. Br. 



Lindsaya linearis, Swartz. 



The January Emu contains an excellent reproduction of a 

 photograph by Mr. A. H. E. Mattingley of the nest, eggs, and 

 young of the Night-Heron, Nycticorax caledonicus. 



