52 AuDAs, An Eastertide in the Victorian Pyrenees [voi!^'xxix. 



elegant Potamogeton-like leaves of the aquatic jilant Otielia 

 ovalifolia covered the water surface. This plant bears large 

 flowers of pure white touched with deepest crimson in the centre, 

 and I regretted it was not blooming, as it would have been a 

 lovely sight, but its beauty is only to be seen during the spring- 

 time. 



On the flats near the Raglan Creek, which are mostly 

 timbered with the Black Wattle, Acacia deciirrcns, var. inol- 

 Hssima, I "noted that the trees had been ruined by what 

 appeared at a little distance to be the ravages of a recent 

 bush-fire, but closer investigation showed the destruction had 

 been caused by the beetle known as the " Fire-Blight of 

 Wattles," Paro'psis orphana, which had eaten the epidermis, 

 or bark, from the footstalks of the foliage, leaving only brown 

 or scorched-looking branches behind. Although the effect 

 was rather drastic, that all were not killed war. shown by some 

 trees sending forth fresh growth. The enemies of the wattle 

 are numerous. They have many battles to fight in the 

 struggle for existence, and I noted that these trees were also 

 infected with some of the borer beetles. There are hundreds 

 of species of these longicorn beetles in Austraha, and, although 

 their habits vary, some living upon the timber while others 

 live upon the bark, their actions are frequently fatal to the 

 trees. I split open some branches and collected some larvae, 

 which I forwarded to Mr. C. French, jun., Acting Government 

 Entomologist, to whom I am indebted for information regarding 

 them. He states that they were longicorn larvai, but it would 

 be almost impossible to say to what species they belong — most 

 probably to the genera Phoracantha and Epithora, both very 

 destructive to our wattles. 



Along the flats of this creek were many nice clumps of 

 shrubs, such as the Woolly Tea-tree, Leptos'permum puhesccns, 

 which grew densely, frequently exceeding thirty feet in height, 

 and the wild Hazel, Pomaderris apetala. These two grew close 

 upon the water's edge, while a little beyond flourished thickets 

 of the Sifting-bush or Mountain Itch, Cassinia acideata, 

 with flowers varying from white to })ink, also the Silver Wattle, 

 Acacia dealbata. the glaucous colouring of the latter being 

 more pronounced than usual. I chanced upon many species 

 of the Cyperaceae or Sedge family growing in the more open 

 spots along the valley of the stream, Gahnia (Cladiiim) psitia- 

 corum, the tallest of the sedges, being jmrticularly i)lentiful, 

 growing to the height of fifteen feet, and bearing panicles of 

 from eighteen inches to two feet in length, in whicli the scarlet 

 seeds could be plainly seen gradually expelling themselves from 

 the glumes. A very near relative of this sedge, (',. Radiila, is 

 now being jmt to commercial use at Ringwood, where it grows 



