10 ME. H. N. EIDLET ON THE 



for, as we shall see, tte plants whose seeds are eaten by the birds, 

 and the Gonolohis, whose downy seeds line the nest of the Tyrant, 

 are carried about everywhere. But, on the other hand, where the 

 convicts had made paths through the woods, and especially where 

 they were able to take the horses for the purpose of fetching fire- 

 wood, these weeds had followed and established themselves. 



Plants introduced hy Sea-currents. 



Mr.W.B.Hemsley,in Bot. Voy. Chall. pt. iii. App. pp. 277-313, 

 has given a good account of all that is at present known about 

 these i^lants, but much yet remains to be ascertained. I 

 fear I can add but little, for though both at Pernambuco and 

 on Fernando Noronha \Ye carefully sought for drift-fruits and 

 seeds, we were only rewarded by finding two seeds of Mucnna 

 ureus in Sueste Bay, a plant not yet established there. The 

 current which strikes the island of rernando Noronha is one 

 which passes up along the east coast of Brazil. This current 

 would naturally strike the island on its south side, and would 

 bring with it seeds from the southern regions of Brazil. It 

 would be aided also at the time of year at which we were 

 upon the island by the trade-winds, which blow from the south- 

 east, and, indeed, we found upon the sands of the bays on 

 that side numerous marine plants and oceanic animals, such as 

 Velellas, Pliysalias, and lanthina, which we did not see at all 

 on the northern side, besides the above-mentioned seeds of 

 Mucuna. But there are a number of plants upon the island of 

 which the seeds are known to be carried about the sea in this 

 way, having been met with in sea-drifc. These are Canavalia 

 ohtusifolia. Hhyncliosia minima., Ahrus precatorius. Acacia Far- 

 nesiana, Ipomcea Tuha, I. Pes-caprce, I. pentaphylla ?, Philoxerus 

 vermicularis, Talinum patens, Porttclaca oleracea, Piciniis com- 

 munis, Laguncularia racemosa. Besides which, species of the 

 genera Sesuvium, Erytlirina, and Pisonia, each of which here 

 supplies an endemic species, have been met with as drift-seeds. 



Jatropha Poliliana and J. urens, both common on all parts 

 of the main island, and also on Eat Island, are probably also 

 drift-seeded plants. The bark and wood of the former was very 

 common on the shores at Pernambuco. 



Canavalia and Philoxerus occurred all along the coasts of Eat 

 Island and the main island, and very rarely went very far from 

 the beach. Acacia Farnesiana may have been introduced by 



