332 Tra>i<ific(w7}s. 



13. Coastal Distribution as an Aid in defining the Floral 



Districts. 



Up to the present time no attempt has been made to divide 

 the South Island into various floristic small divisions.* Such are, 

 in fact, very difficult to delimit. This arises from the fact that 

 the species of wide areas are not known, and can be only guessed 

 at, and also that these smaller divisions must overlap and be 

 likewise in some measure artificial. It seems interesting to in- 

 quire whether the distribution of the coastal plants can shed any 

 light on this matter. Such minor divisions may be termed 

 " districts," just as the three larger have been named " pro- 

 vinces," the whole of the New Zealand area forming a " region." 



On the south side of Cook Strait the dunes with Spinifex 

 hirsutus, and the cliffs with Coprosma baueri, give a distinctive 

 character to that area. Here, too, are Entelea arhorescens, 

 Corynocarpus laevigata, Veronica speciosa, Euphrasia cutieafa, 

 Griselinia Iticida, and some other plants which are peculiar to 

 the district or only reach south for a short distance. 



Cliffs with a formation of Olearia insignis, Phormiuni cooki- 

 anum, and Veronica hulkeana are distinctive of east Marlborough, 

 and that distinction is heightened in comparison with Canter- 

 bury by the groves of Corynocarpus Icevigata. Myoporum IcBtum, 

 and Dodonwa viscosa, while on the summits of rocks is Griselinia 

 lucida. The nikau palm [Rhapaloslylis sapida), according to 

 Mr. H. J. Matthews, is a feature of the shores of west Nelson. 

 Here, too, is Veronica gracillima. On the volcanic rocks of 

 Banks Peninsula is the fine Senecio lagopus,'\ and, at a greater 

 altitude, the beautiful Veronica lavaudiana — this, however, not 

 really a coastal plant. South-west Otago, as mentioned before, 

 is characterized by the coastal thickets of Olearia operina and 

 Senecio rotundifolius, and by the fine Aciphylla intermedia. The 

 shores of Foveaux Strait have the coastal moors before de- 

 scribed, with Gentiana saxosa and Euphrasia repens. 



From the above, then, it seems clear that the coastal plants 

 and formations are distinctly an aid towards defining the floristic 

 districts of the South Island. 



14. Floristic Details. 

 The pteridophytes and spermaphytes composing the coastal 

 vegetation consist in part of species confined to the coast or 



* For this purpose the geographical divisions have been used hitherto, 

 and these are quite unsuitable and unnatural from both the biological 

 and floristic standpoint. 



f Senecio saxifragoides of Hooker's Handbook and Cheeseman's Manual, 

 with which determination, in the face of Raoul's plate and the habitat of 

 his ;S'. lagopus, I cannot agree. Laing and Blackwel! also hold the same 

 opinion (35 ; p. 438). 



