214 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



parium, Melaleuca ericifolia, M. squarrosa, &c., occupy portions 

 of the water spaces, and extend far over the dry land, which, 

 though dry in summer season, is subject to inundation. In 

 places it is dense and continuous, but in others it is broken 

 up into patches, some of which are circular in outline, the 

 spaces between being occupied by lowly semi-aquatic plants. 

 Deeper in the marshes the fringing tea-tree gives way to tall, 

 close-growing plants of grass-like aspect, and some of which have, 

 by the end of the year, become topped with rich brown flowerings 

 or fruits. In this group we most frequently found Schos'ims 

 brevifoliiis, Restio tetraphyllus, Leptocmyus brownii, Lepidos- 

 permum exaltatum, Lepidosperma coacavum, Gahnia trijida, 

 with the Swamp-oak, Viminaria denudata, &c., while here and 

 there a small swamp eucalyptus broke the monotony of what, as 

 a bird's-eye view, might seem like a plain of waving Prairie-grass. 

 The tea-tree which persists in these marsh lands, while not exceed- 

 ing the surrounding plants in height, is Melaleiica squarrosa. In 

 the case of the Oberon Valley morass the marsh land reaches the 

 foot of the eucalyptus-clad foothills of the higher ridge, where it 

 is fringed with a narrow belt of Grass-tree. 



Out of these morasses, in which the courses of the streams are 

 often difficult of definition, the rivers and creeks meander to the 

 sea. Where the streams deepen and get clear of the swamps the 

 usual river vegetation asserts itself, and we find Limnanthemuni 

 exaltahitn, Typha angustifolia, 7'rifflochin procera, Ileleocharis 

 sphacelata, Arundo jihragmites, &c., &:c. 



On the banks of the Derby River I adigqfera australis, 

 which is common on sandy soil throughout the Park, creeps 

 down from the sand hummocks and mingles with the plants 

 which grow up from the water, accompanied by the pest Accena 

 sanguisorbce. A little further from the water's edge, and 

 sheltering among the Leptospermum scrub, the Native Cherry, 

 Exocarpus sti'ieta, grows plentifully, and at Christmas was laden 

 with its singular so-called fruit. 



The coastal vegetation is much the same as in other parts of 

 of south-eastern Australia. There are the salsolaceous pioneers 

 of the sand hummocks, seedlings of which were taken from below 

 high tide mark, the grass, Spinifex hii-snta, backed up by the 

 scrubby and robust Gorrea alba, Styjihelia richea, and Leptos- 

 permum kevigahiin. The Styphelia was bearing the small, white, 

 sweet, succulent berries, from which it is often called the 

 " Native Currant." \Vhere mud flats take the place of sandy 

 beaches, however, the Spurious Mangrove, Avicennia officvaalis, 

 grows freely in low, squat bushes fringing the sea, in the water, or 

 left nearly high and dry as the tides rise and fall. This plant fruits 

 at Christmas time, the fruit being yellow, of about the size of 

 almonds. An interesting feature in connection with the Spurious 



