Cheeseman. — On the Flora of the North Cape District. 339 



was also explored for a distance of two or three miles. Large 

 masses of the rare fern Loxsonia cunninghamii were seen 

 along the banks of the Waitetoki streamlet, and in the light 

 bush covering the hillsides Pittosporum reflexum was most 

 abundant. In this locality it showed an unusual amount of 

 variation. In some specimens the leaves were extremely 

 narrow, and the plant could then with difficulty be dis- 

 tinguished from Cyathodes acerosa, except by handling it, 

 when the much softer foliage at once betrayed its distinctness. 

 Forms with broader leaves much resembled Leucopiogon fasci- 

 culatus, and those with leaves still wider approached very 

 closely to the typical form of Pittosporum p)imeleoides . 



The Oruaiti Eiver, which discharges into the head of 

 Mangonui Harbour, was examined for some distance. For 

 several miles it is fringed with extensive mangrove swamps, 

 the trees in some cases reaching a height of from 15ft. to 20ft. 

 Along the edge of these swamps is the usual growth of 

 brackish-water plants, such as Plagianthus divaricatus, 

 Crantzia, Selliera, Samolus, Juncus maritimus, and Cladium 

 junceum. Associated with these was an introduced grass, 

 Polypogon fugax, now widely distributed through the North 

 Island of New Zealand. The road winds along the margin of 

 the river, in many places fringed with Asphodclus fistidosiis 

 and Verbena officinalis, and with all the plashy places at its 

 side filled with KylUnga. Above the influence of the tide the 

 Oruaiti flows through a broad flat valley, evidently once in 

 cultivation, but now fast reverting to its original vegetation of 

 Cordyline, Pliormium, and Leptospermum. Cypcnts hu- 

 chanani, Kirk, was extremely plentiful in this portion of its 

 course. 



The south-west side of Mangonui Harbour is surrounded 

 by undulating clay hills covered with a scanty vegetation of 

 Pteris and Leptospermum, mixed with Pomaderris elliptica 

 and a few other shrubs. A fine blue Thelymitra, probably 

 referable to T. pulchella, was very plentiful. At Cooper's 

 Beach, only a short distance from Mangonui, the rare Todea 

 barbara grows in some quantity. Some of the clumps were 

 several feet in diameter, and appeared to suffer very little 

 from the fires which sweep periodically over most of the 

 open country in the north. Following the Awanui Eoad, we 

 skirted the shore of Doubtless Bay, passing a succession of 

 sandy bays separated by rocky headlands adorned with pohu- 

 tukawas in full bloom. The Oruru Eiver was reached at 

 Taipa, about half a mile above its mouth. Here are ex- 

 tensive sandy flats covered with Pteris and an unusually 

 silky variety of Leptospermum scoparium. Isolepis nodosa was 

 most abundant, and in open places the ground was carpeted 

 with Zoysia pungens. Two introduced grasses, Festuca bro- 



