140 



ern Germany in 58 15' lat. The highest point of the peak 

 of Chimborazo reached by v. Humboldt was at a height of 

 18097 Parisian feet; only a few lichens were traced above the 

 limit of eternal snow. The last collected were Lecidea atro- 

 virens and Gyrophorarugosa, Achar., about 2820 toises high. 

 The last moss, Grimmia longirostris, flourished 400 toises 

 lower down. 



M. von Baer's remarkable voyage to Nova Zembla* has 

 filled up one of the greatest gaps in the sources for the study 

 of the true geography of plants. All that we formerly knew 

 of the vegetation in the polar zone above the limits of Europe 

 was limited to a few scattered notices ; at present however, now 

 that a scientific person like v. Baer has visited the unknown 

 Nova Zembla, we possess a description of the relations of ve- 

 getation of this zone, such as but few districts can offer. 



Nova Zembla, it would seem, must be regarded as a conti- 

 nuation of the northern Ural, whence it becomes probable a 

 priori, that the vegetation of those islands may agree with 

 that in the region of the alpine herbs of the southern Ural. 

 However, we will pass on to Von Baer's descriptions of the 

 climate and vegetation of Nova Zembla. Nowhere was a con- 

 tinuous grass-plat observed wiiich might have deserved the 

 name of a meadow, not even a continuous covering of moss ; 

 even the foliaceous lichens flourish but poorly on Nova Zem- 

 bla, while the crustaceous lichens clothe every block of augitic 

 porphyry, and occur also on the other stones, yet less fre- 

 quently. On the other hand, Dry as octopetala, in continuous 

 withered turfs, clothes the dry hilly declivities formed by the 

 loose stones. There is no heath, no Empetrum nigrum, Ar- 

 butus alpina, Betula nana, Sedumpalustre, Rubus Cham&morus, 

 &c. ; in short ah 1 those plants are here wanting which I have 

 mentioned in my Geography of Plants as characteristic of the 

 southern portion of the polar zone, and which I attempted to se- 

 parate under the name of arctic zone from the polar zone. Ab- 

 sence of vegetation, says v. Baer, is characteristic of the deserts 

 of Nova Zembla ; isolated specimens of the genus Draba are 

 found there. The loose masses of solid rock exhibit the in- 

 crusting lichens ; Verrucaria geographica is the most common, 

 Stereocaulon paschale and isolated specimens of Cochlearia 

 and Papaver nudicaule. The rocky rubbish, a more decom- 



* Bulletin scientif. de 1'Acad. imperiale des Sciences de St. Petersbourg. 



