vi FLORA OF NEW ZEALAND. 
Fungi, that will reward future explorers in what, as far as flowering plants are concerned, are 
exhausted fields. Upwards of 114 Ferns (including Lycopodia) are already known*, a number which 
might be swelled by nearly one-half, were all the varieties which have been described as species 
considered by me as such. I do not anticipate many more novelties in this Order; the species (with 
few exceptions) having very wide ranges in the islands, and these beautiful plants having always 
attracted a greater share of attention than others. The foliaceous Cryptogamst+ (Mosses and Hepa- 
tics) are by far the most extensive Natural Order of plants (except Fungi) in these islands, as they 
are of most temperate and especially moist climates. Of Hepaticee Mr. Mitten enumerates in this work 
180, whereas only about 150 are found in all Great Britain; and Mr. Wilson's * Muscologia of New 
Zealand” includes 250 species, amongst which are many of the most gigantic, beautiful, and interest- 
ing in structure, in the world. I have no doubt that both these Orders will be more than doubled : 
it reguires a practised eye, and some previous knowledge, thoroughly to explore a small district 
rich in Mosses and Hepaticee. 
In Fungi this flora is still most imperfect, owing to the unattractive appearance of the species to 
the general observer, and the difficulty of preserving them in a fit state for examination. Mr. 
Berkeley has undertaken their arrangement, and his are the first observations of any consequence 
that have ever appeared on the New Zealand species of this curious and most interesting Natural 
Order, which is by far the largest in the vegetable kingdom. So many of the kinds are minute, and 
even microscopic, that it is probable that, when properly investigated, there will prove to be upwards 
of 1000 species in New Zealand. 
Much novelty is not to be looked for amongst the foliaceous and larger Lichens, but great 
additions may be made amongst crustaceous and minute epiphytical species. The New Zealand 
Algz, of which Dr. Harvey enumerates nearly 300 species, have from their beauty and singularity 
long been objects of great interest to the botanist; and by the labours of Menzies, Turner, Bory, 
Harvey, and Montagne, this Natural Order has been better illustrated than any other. The great 
amount of novelty contained in the collections of Dr. Lyall, however, received since this work was 
begun, show that even this department may be greatly increased. 
The total number of species brought together in this Flora is nearly 1900, to which upwards of 
100 may be added, for the many minute Cryptogamia which I possess, but which are in too imperfect 
a state for satisfactory determination. This is much more than double the numerical extent of the 
last enumeration published, that of M. Raoul, who in 1846 enumerates only 920 species, which may 
be reduced to 770, if the naturalized and erroneous species be eliminated. In 1838 Mr. Cunningham 
gave 640 species, which should be reduced to 570; in 1832 M. Richard included 350 in his list; 
Forster’s ‘Prodromus’ has 154; and Banks and Solander's collections amount to 426. This rapid 
increase of the Flora, which has thus been quintupled in twenty years, is mainly due to the attention 
which has been devoted to the lower Orders: this may easily be shown; for whereas in all the early 
enumerations and collections the number of flowering plants exceeds the flowerless, in M. Raoul’s 
Catalogue they are equal, and in the present work the relative proportions are reversed; the Pheeno- 
gamic plants being to the Cryptogamic as 1 to 1:6; 2. e. about two to three. 
* Banks and Solander described 66 species; Forster enumerates 40; M. A. Richard 57, of which 8 should 
be expunged; A. Cunningham and M. Raoul 112, from which fully 30 must be deducted, to bring the lists into 
comparison with my own estimate of 114. 
+ These were little attended to by the earlier explorers, except Menzies. Banks and Solander collected very 
few Mosses. 
