NATURAL AREAS AND REGIONS 



693 



Guantanamo. Of course, many natural 

 areas of this region remain undisturbed 

 for being inaccessible or nearly so. 

 One of the classic localities in Cuban 

 history of Science, the old Lescaille 

 Mansion, once the headquarters of the 

 great botanist Ch. Wright and of the 

 eminent zoologist Gundlach, lies in the 

 mountains north of Guantanamo, at 

 more than 2000 ft. altitude. It is now 

 in ruins and not very easy to find in 

 the woods even with the aid of a guide, 

 but if prepared, it would be an excellent 

 site for a biological station. The rarest 

 of the Cuban mammals, the "Almiqui" 

 (Solenodon cuhanus^, insect eating, noc- 

 turnal and with its nest underground, 

 may be found in the mountains of 

 Sagua-Baracoa. Another mammal, not 

 so rare (Capromys melanurus) , seems to 

 be confined also in Oriente province. 

 The south coast, between Cape Maisi 

 and Caimanera Naval Station, was 

 botanically unexplored in most of its 

 length until 1924. It appeared to be the 

 driest region of Cuba, and consequently, 

 in many places there is an abundant 

 growth of Cacti, as for instance, the 

 "Card6n" (Lemaireocereus hystrix), the 

 most abundant; the "Jijfras" (Cephalo- 

 cereus spp.); the globose "Mel6n de 

 costa" (Cactus harlowii), and the "Pa- 

 tana" (Opuntia hystrix), of Imias, 

 whose branches break off and stick to 

 the traveller, even when slightly touched. 

 The valued "Tebenque" (Evolvulus 

 arbuscula), several species of Croton, 

 Thyana, Tabebuia, Plumiera are also 

 abundant. The adjacent region is 

 mountainous and not so dry as the coast. 

 The highest and steepest of those moun- 

 tains is the Sierra de Imlas (4020 ft.), 

 not far from the coast. The huge "Juba" 

 (Dipholis spp.), the "Chote" (Alchornea 

 latifolia), the 'Talma boba" or 'Talma 

 justa" (Euterpe globosa), are conspicuous 

 elements of the high zone of vegetation 

 named "Monte fresco" (Cool forest). 

 The top of the highest peaks is wooded 

 and of a difficult access, owing to a 

 dense growth of bamboo (Chusquea 

 abietifolia) . At the foot of those moun- 

 tains is plenty of "Mostacillo" (Cap- 



paris spp.) and of "Guayacan" (Guaya- 

 cum officinale), as well as a great variety 

 of rare trees. 



Sierra Maestra 



The Sierra Maestra Range, the highest 

 of the Island, is divided in three groups 

 with a more or less similar flora. The 

 first lies east of Santiago and culminates 

 in the 4000 ft. high Gran Piedra. West of 

 Santiago is the Cobre Group, with its 

 highest peak in Loma del Gato, about 

 3700 ft. Features of its slopes are the 

 groves of "Caney" (Mayepeadomingen- 

 sts), "Palma Justa" (Euterpe globosa), 

 the ' 'Platano cimarr6n' ' (Helicona bihai) , 

 and patches of Myrica cerifera and of 

 Ilex montana on the gravelly hillsides. 

 In the ravines and near the tops are 

 dense forests including here and there 

 some pines (Pinus cubensis), isolated or 

 in small groves. Here, near a place 

 named by the owners "Jardin des 

 fougeres," may be observed interesting 

 biotic phenomena, as a palm (Euterpe 

 globosa), 12ft. tall, growing on the trunk 

 of a tree fern; a large inclined Ficus tree, 

 sustained by its former adventitious 

 roots, transformed into several big 

 columns nearly one ft. in diameter. A 

 well fitted place for biological studies 

 is the La Salle Estate, on the crest of 

 Sierra Maestra, very near Loma del 

 Gato, at more than 3000 ft. alt.; probably 

 no other house in Cuba is at a higher 

 altitude. A number of habitations 

 and rooms for work are available there 

 during a great part of the year, on 

 application to Colegio Nra. Sra. de la 

 Caridad, Corona Alta 7, Santiago de 

 Cuba. Not far from this city, on the 

 south coast, 5 mi. to the East, has been 

 found the extremely beautiful butterfly 

 Papilio Gundlachianus. 



The main group of the range, 

 where are the highest altitudes of 

 Cuba, is the Maestra proper, with Pico 

 Turquino 6630 ft. high, although 

 before its ascent by Dr. Ekman, it 

 was supposed to be at least 1000 

 ft. higher. There are also other high 

 peaks, for instance the Bayamesa, 

 south of Bayamo, about 5600 ft., and 



