A Botanical Expedition to Nicaragua. 349 



cano. A rift on the north-eastern side toward the Indian vil- 

 lage Alta Gracias, mars its symmetry; the space at the top 

 between its inner slope and the outer slope of the volcano is 

 very narrow, being not more than one to three yards in width. 

 On the eastern side there is considerable burning sulphur, the 

 fumes of which greeted our nostrils 500 feet below the sum- 

 mit. Ordinarily the summit is capped with clouds, but to-day 

 it is clear, and a magnificent view of the island, the lake, the 

 mountains of Nicaragua and Costa Rica, and the Pacific 

 Ocean is presented 



"A few Colcoptcra and Orthoptcra were collected quite 

 near the summit of the volcano. The Coleo-ptera were easily 

 picked from the white blouse of our guide to which they were 

 attracted by its color, while the Orthoftcra were found princi- 

 pally on the bare volcanic sand. 



"The descent to the camp was made in a little more than 

 one hour, the loose sand enabling us to slide down rapidly." 



Here, then, in a few hours travel we may pass from the 

 swamps of the coast to an elevation of over 5,000 feet. This 

 variation in the surface features, — the swamp, the forest, the 

 mountain, — all within easy reach from Moyogalpa, affords a 

 variety of habitats for plants, a fact which makes Moyogalpa 

 an excellent base of operations for the collector. Madera, the 

 volcano on the southern portion of the island, 4,190 feet above 

 sea-level, would no doubt offer many superior advantages in 

 higher altitudes as its surface has not been disturbed by erup- 

 tions within the memory of man and is consequently covered 

 with dense primeval forests. 



The forests however which cover the greater portion of the 

 island are scarcely as dense as those along the lower San Juan 

 River, probably because of the longer and more clearly de- 

 fined dry season. They also differ from the latter in the 

 greater variety of valuable woods, but in other respects are 

 like the forests at Castillo, of which a more detailed descrip- 

 tion is given below. 



The comparative scarcity in these forests of slicks and logs. 



