264 A NATURALIST IN THE PACIFIC CHAP. 



Another feature of interest is to be found in the distribution 

 within the archipelago of the species of the peculiar genera. As 

 in the case of the Compositae and Lobeliaceae, but few of the 

 species are generally distributed, most being restricted to one 

 island or to two or three adjacent islands. The suspension of the 

 dispersal among the islands is, however, not so marked as with the 

 species of the two orders just named. 



NOTE. Some further remarks on some of these genera are 

 given in Note 68. 



THE ENDEMIC GENERA OF THE FIJIAN ISLANDS. 



The interest that is associated with the endemic genera of 

 Hawaii fails to attach itself to those of Fiji. For this there are 

 several reasons. In the first place, our acquaintance with the 

 Fijian flora is much less complete. In the next place, the group 

 holds a much less isolated position, and the history of an endemic 

 genus may have a significance quite different from that connected 

 with it in Hawaii. Fiji also lacks, on account of its submergence 

 in the Tertiary period, those highly interesting genera of the 

 Compositae and Lobeliaceae that form the chief feature in the early 

 history of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Then, again, on account 

 of our imperfect knowledge of the floras of the neighbouring groups 

 of continental islands to the westward, the New Hebrides, Santa 

 Cruz, and Solomon Groups, we can never feel quite confident that 

 any particular genus is really peculiar to the Fijian archipelago. 

 This is well brought out in the later history of the genera 

 designated by Dr. Seemann in his Flora Vitiensis as peculiar to 

 Fiji. 



Of the sixteen genera enumerated by Dr. Seemann, and given 

 in the table below, only about half now retain their character 

 of being restricted to Fiji. Nor does it seem likely that future 

 investigations will increase this number, since, judging from a 

 remark made by Mr. Hemsley in his paper on the botany of 

 the Tongan Group, explorations subsequent to those of Dr. 

 Seemann. more especially those of Mr. Home, have not apparently 

 added a single new endemic genus to the Fijian flora. It will 

 be seen from the list that at least four of the sixteen genera have 

 since been found in the Malayan region, and in one case (Smythea 

 pacifica) the same species occurs in both regions ; whilst a fifth 

 genus (Haplopetalon) has been recorded from New Caledonia. 



