18 



daceae) Townsonia deflexa; (Ranunculaceae) Ranunculus 

 verticillatus; (Magnoliaceae) Drimys Traversii; Pittospora- 

 ceae) Pittosporum Dallii; (Leguminosae) Carmichaelia Fieldii; 

 (Umbelliferae) Aciphylla Hookeri, A. indurata, A. trifoliata, 

 Anisotome diver si folia; (Epacridaceae) DracophyllumTownsoni, 

 D. pubescens; (Boraginaceae) Myosotis angustata, M. concinna; 

 (Loganiaceae) Mitrasacme montana var. Helmsii; (Gentian- 

 aceae) Gentiana filipes, G. gracilifolia, G. vernicosa; 

 (Scrophulariaceae) Veronica Townsoni, V, diver gens, V. 

 albicans 20 , V. coarctata; Euphrasia Cheesemanii; (Com- 

 positae) Celmisia rupestris, C. Gibbsii, C. Morgani, C. parva, 

 C. dubia, C. semicordata, C. cordatifolia, C. Dallii, C. lateralis, 

 Senecio glaucophyllus, S. laxifolius, S. Hectori. 



If the species of the two previous lists be compared as to 

 their habitats it will be seen that 22 of the North-eastern 

 endemics are rock or rock-debris plants, whereas the North- 

 western endemics are mostly forest, herb-field, or scrub species. 

 Many of the rock plants of the North-eastern district, together 

 with certain more wide-spread species, form one of the most 

 clearly-defined plant-associations of the New Zealand Region, 

 the composition of which at its full development is as follows : 

 Angelica montana, Anisotome aromatica var., A. filifolia, 

 Celmisia Monroi, Clematis afoliata, Coriaria sarmentosa var., 

 Linum monogynum, Olearia insignis, Phormium Colensoi, 

 Senecio Monroi, Veronica Hulkeana and Wahlenbergia 

 Matthewsii. This association is confined to the drier parts of 

 the district, with the addition of the seaward Kaikoura moun- 

 tainsa wet area but does not extend into the Eastern 

 Botanical District, but halts all on a sudden, although the habitat 

 it affects is everywhere in abundance. The characteristic 

 member of the association (Olearia insignis) a most aberrant 

 member of the genus, probably of generic distinctness, with no 

 near relatives in the New Zealand region, or elsewhere should 

 theoretically be of great age and so of wide-spread distribution, 

 yet the contrary is the case. 



(d) The effect of the frequent south-west wind on plant-distribution 

 in the South Island and Stewart Island. 



On Stewart Island, and for a certain distance northwards in 

 the south of the South Island, the downpour which so often 

 accompanies the frequent south-westerly gales favoured the 

 establishment of forest on such parts of the lowland and mon- 

 tane belts as the edaphic and other climatic conditions were 

 favourable. Much of the great South Otago forest has been 

 destroyed as settlement progressed, but that of Stewart Island 

 is virtually intact. On the mainland here were both taxad and 



2 - V. albicans may be only a synonym for V. carnosula. It is related to 

 V, ample xicaulis, a species hitherto only recorded from the Rangitata river-basin. 

 There are other glaucuous-leaved veronicas more or less closely related to 

 V. albicans, apparently peculiar to this district, but they have hitherto been 

 referred to V. pinguifolia, a very large aggregate species consisting of many most 

 distinct microspecies. 



