228 SUBANTARCTIC ISLANDS OF NEW ZEALAND. [Ec(ili»/i'r/il Biitdtuj. 



is by no means uniform in its composition, such distinctions are somewhat artifical. 

 and that it ^'s best to consider the formation as one whok'. 



On the slopes from the shore near the landing-place great tussocks, 1 -5 m. tall, 

 of Poa litorosa with thick trunks grow so closely together out of the wet peaty soil 

 that it is hardly feasible to force a passage between them, and it is much more easy 

 to walk upon their tops, stepjjing from tussock to tussock. Poa foliosa and Carex 

 trifida also occur to a limited extent. 



Proceeding inland, by degrees the tussock-trunks become lower, while much 

 Polystichum vestitum enters in, so that at first glance it might :!,ppear that these two 

 species alone were present. But this is not so, for where the tussock and fern are 

 less dense, and as the distance from the sea increases, both decrease in size, and 

 there enters into the formation much bright-green AcifhyUa antipoda, pale bluish- 

 green Acaena Sanguisorbae var. antarctica (climbing over the tussocks), and the 

 tender green fern Histiopteris incisa. 



The soil consists of a rather loose brown peat, so soft that a stick can be tlu^ust 

 deeply into it. Even in winter water cannot be wrung out of the surface soil, but 

 this can be quickly kneaded into the consistency of porridge. The surface of the 

 ground is most uneven, owing partly to the dead trunks of grass or fern forming 

 mounds, and partly to hollows of varying depth. It can easily be seen that the 

 tussocks and Polystichum, afford a considerable amount of shelter for low-growing 

 plants, so that in the numerous spaces there is a rich vegetation, made up, however, 

 of but few species, of which the following are the most important members : The 

 ferns — Blechnum penna marina, B. capense, Asplenium. bulbiferum (a small, thick- 

 leaved endemic form which might perhaps be referred to A. flaccidum,), Hypolepis 

 miUefolimn, Pratia arenaria, Luzula crinita, Epilobium. linnaeoides, E. alsinoides 

 (hitherto so referred, but most likely some other species), Stellaria decipiens var. 

 angustata, Lycopodium. fastigiatum, L. varimn var. polaris, Helichrysum bellidioides. 

 Coprosma repens, C. cuneata (very stunted plants), the filmy fern Hymenophyllum 

 multifidum. forming large mats upon the ground, and growing in company with the 

 liverwort Tylimanthus JiomomaUus (?) and certain mosses, frequently burying its 

 curled-up fronds amongst their leaves. Lichens are an especial feature of this 

 formation ; the following are common : Sticta Freycinetvi. S. orygmaea, S. fllicina, 

 Cladonia aggregata, C. i^erticillata, C. pycnodada, C. gracilis var. campbelliana, Stereo- 

 caxilon argodes, and Usnea articulata. Liverworts and a few mosses are abundant 

 on the surface of the ground — e.g., PaUavicinia connivens, Lepidolaena Menziesii, 

 Lophocolea pallida, Metzgeria glaberrirna, Tylimanthus homomallus, and Leptostomum 

 inclinans. 



The flat meadow is not one unbroken formation, but all over its surface are 

 small bogs, more or less circular in outline. 



The upper slopes of the island are covered with immense tussocks of Poa litorosa 

 and Polystichum vestitum, as elsewhere ; but where the shelter is greater the following 

 distinct combination enters in, which may be called the Coprosma-Stilbocarpa associa- 

 tion. This, as just stated, occupies the more sheltered positions. StUbocarpa polaris, 

 usually quite pure, is dominant, the associated plants being Urtica australis, Poa 

 foliosa, Polystichum, vestitum, and Coprosmd^ciliata, this last frequently with a semi- 

 spherical leafy crown aboiit TS m. in diameter, the ultimate twigs close together 



