42 SYLVICULTURE IN THE TROPICS 



island and up to a corresponding elevation, the type of 

 forest is very similar to that of Ceylon, and many of 

 the genera, with the addition of Podocarpus, the same ; 

 but the mountains soar up to elevations above 3500 

 metres (12,000 ft.), and the forest vegetation at the 

 Greater altitudes is much more stunted with wind- 

 swept crowns, and, except near the summits, much 

 covered with mosses and lichens. 



On the drier side, as in Ceylon, a savannah-forest 

 rises above the coast forests, but is composed, on the 

 spurs, of pure Casuarina rnontana, while in the ravines 

 will be found broad -leaved forest, chiefly Quercus 

 pruinosa. 1 Among these will also be found genera 

 belonging to more temperate latitudes, such as maples 

 and chestnuts. 2 At above 2800 metres (roughly 9000 

 ft.), according to Schimper, the forest ceases to exist. 



Descriptions of the mountain regions of other 

 islands in the Indian Archipelago show very similar 

 variations ; only in Celebes the Screw-pine (Pandanus) 

 seems to ascend to and cover the summits of the moun- 

 tains up to 1560 metres (above 5000 ft.). 



In Mauritius the elevation of the mountain ranges 

 does not carry the forests outside of the basal zone, in 

 which the tropical evergreen forest is very similar in 

 character to that of the Indian forests. Among the 

 more important trees are CalophyUum Inophyllum, 

 Canarium Colophania, Foetidia rnauritiana, Eugenia 

 glomerata,Diospyros mauritiana, Sideroxylon grandi- 

 fiorum, Elaeodendron orientale, etc. 3 



On the continent of Africa among the mountains 

 and mountain ranges rising to sufficient elevations to 

 show gradations of forest vegetation are the Shire High- 

 l;i nds and M'lanje, Kilimanjaro, Ruwenzori, Mount Klgon, 

 Mount Kenia, and the Abyssinian Highlands. We 

 possess reports specially written on the subject of the 

 forests of two of them which must serve as types for 



1 Schimper, op. cil. p. "'.'t!. 

 - Indian Forester, vol. xxvi. No. 9. 

 :; Et. Thompson, Report on the Forests of Mauritius, 1880. 



