AN liNTERlM CENSUS OF CYANOPHOUIC PrANTS 

 IN THE QUEENSLAND FEORA. 



By F. Smith, B.Sc, F.I.C. 



Assistant Chemist, Dept. Agriculture and Stock, 



Brisbane, and 



C. T. White 



Government Botanist, Brisbane. 



{Mead before the Royal Society of Queensland, 21th May, 1918). 



The summaries made by Greshoff showed a Avide 

 distribution of hydrocyanic acid in the vegetable kingdom. 

 The list of cyanophoric plants pubhshed by him in 1906 ^' -' 

 embodying his own observations at Buitenzorg and 

 those of previous and independent workers, comprised 

 nearly 100 genera, and these were later considerabl}^ 

 supplemented by the examinations of plant material at 

 KeM^3 The number of plants ascertained to l)e 

 cyanophoric is continually being added to. Dr. J. M. 

 Petrie *> ^' ^' has recently investigated the occurrence of 

 hydrocyanic acid in plants indigenous to and naturalised 

 or cultivated in New South Wales, and has defined as 

 containing cyanogenetic glucosides 61 new species and 

 varieties, including 22 grasses. The present paper presenting 

 the results of observations instituted in 1914, and continued 

 with intermission till the present, is, therefore, while 

 including a number of species dealt with by Petrie, to be 

 regarded as extending the work on the Australian flora. 



Upward of 700 plants have been examined, and were 

 mostly specially collected for the purpose. The test 



(1) See references at end tf paper. 



