136 Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. [Sess. 



galericulata, Hydrocotyle vulgaris, Hypnum cuspidatum, etc. The bottom 

 is carpeted in many places with Littorella lacustris, Lobelia Dortmanna, 

 Isoetes lacustris, Nitella opaca, and Fontinalis antipyretica, while the other 

 submersed plants are Castalia speciosa, Potamogeton natans, P. pusillus, P. 

 perfoliatus, P. lucens, P. crispus, P. rufescens, the last with floating coriaceous 

 leaves, and Ranunculus Drouetii. 



Photographs of these lochs could not be obtained, owing to the very 

 unpropitiouS' weather that occurred during the time allotted for their 

 inspection. 



At none of tlie lochs of this Area (V.) was there an}?- particular abun- 

 dance of Bryophytes ; hence their general absence from the lists of plants. 



III.— Area VI. 



We now proceed to examine some of the lochs of Wigtownshire (p. 66), 

 where both lowland and highland types may be found, although none of 

 those that I have visited are at a greater elevation above sea level than 

 400 feet. Stormy weather considerably hindered work, so that during the 

 time at my disposal I was unable to visit some of the lochs situated in out- 

 lying places, and difficult of access under any conditions. In particular, I 

 regret having to omit those in the north of the county, within and 

 without the Ayrshire border, because these are less likely to have under- 

 gone alteration by human agencies. 



Black Loch is the smallest of a series of three, and is situated 5 miles 

 north-west of Kirkcowan. It is about I mile long, is surrounded by 

 a treeless moor, and its water is rather peaty. The only strip of 

 shore is at the east end ; elsewhere a bank of peat separates the water from 

 the moor. Rocks at tlie east end are overgrown with Grimmia apocarpa, 

 Orthotrichum rupestre, Rhacomitrium lanuginosum, etc. Bryophytes are 

 otherwise very scarce. The aquatic vegetation is chiefly at the west end of 

 the loch, and bottom-carpeting plants such as Littorella lacustris are scarce. 

 At the margin there are associations of the following species : — Phragmites 

 communis, Scirpus lacustris, Equisetum limosum, Carex rostrata, C. filiformis, 

 and Castalia sj^eciosa, and the submerged aquatics are fairly represented. 



Loch Heron is a somewhat rectangular sheet of water, nearly as large 

 again as the last mentioned, and situated ^ mile to the south-west of it. 

 There is a plantation of conifers upon the south and east shores, otherwise 

 it is surrounded by cultivated land or moor. The water is clear, and slightly 

 peaty. The shores are stony, or in some places there is a peat bank entei-ing 

 the water without the intervention of a shore. There are associations of 



