19 



Nothofagus forests, but this genus, strange to say, is absent in 

 Stewart Island, nor does it occur in the New Zealand sub- 

 antarctic islands. 



The low temperature of the atmosphere during a south-west 

 gale, the cold rain and the frequent cloudy skies of the South 

 Otago and Stewart Districts are strongly reflected in the vegeta- 

 tion. Thus sphagnum bogs are a striking feature in many 

 places; there is a cold, "sour" soil which favours the establish- 

 ment of tall tussock-grassland of Danthonia Raoulii var. rubra 

 which is accompanied by certain species generally confined to 

 the high mountains elsewhere (e.g., Astelia montana var. 

 Blechnum penna marina, Cyathodes empetrifolia, Gaultheria 

 depressa, G. perplexa, Herpolirion novae-zelandiae, Oreostyli- 

 dium subulatum, Pentachondra pumila, Raoulia glabra. Other 

 high-mountain plants also descend to sea-leval, and this is 

 especially the case in Stewart Island, where the following have 

 been noted : Astelia linearis, Caltha novae-zelandiae, Carpha 

 alpina, Celmisia argentea, Coprosma repens, Donatia novae- 

 zelandiae, Dracophyllum Pearsoni, D. politum, Gaimardia 

 ciliata, Geum leiospermum, Olearia Colensoi, Oreobolus 

 pectinatus, Senecio elaeagnifolius, S. Lyallii. 



In the high mountains the abundant south-west rain is re- 

 flected by the presence of extensive herb-fields a spectacle 

 altogether different from the tussock-grassland of the dry North 

 Otago Botanical District, where Poa intermedia dominates. At 

 that point, where the Old Man Range is at the limit of the south- 

 westerly rain, its rich vegetation and florula stand out in 

 striking contrast to the adjacent hills and mountains of the 

 North Otago Botanical District now without tussocks for hun- 

 dreds of feet, their main vegetation mats of Raoulia lutescens. 

 Originally these hills were tussock-clad, but they never bore the 

 abundant collections of alpine herbaceous and semi-woody plants 

 which distinguish the flat summit of the Old Man Range, while 

 their present depletion bears striking testimony to the effect of 

 the south-west rain upon plant-distribution. 



The climate of the South Otago Botanical District has 

 favoured a certain amount of local endemism, but as this climate 

 is somewhat similar to that of the Fiord Botanical District 

 they possess many species of restricted distribution in common 

 (e.g., Aciphylla pinnatifida, Anisotome intermedia, Celmisia} 

 argenta, C. Hectori, C. lanceolata, C. ramulosa, C. verbascifolia, 

 Dracophyllum Menziesii, Gentiana saxosa, Olearia moschata, 

 Ourisia prorepens, Ranunculus Buchanani, Senecio revolutus, 

 Veronica dasyphylla, V. Hectori, V. Petriei. 



Stewart Island has a fairly strong local endemism (19 

 species) made up as follows: (Gramineae) Danthonia 

 pungens; (Cyperaceae) Uncinia pedicellata, U. compacta var. 

 caespitiformis, Carex longiculmis; (Liliaceae) Chrysobactron 

 Gibbsii; (Ranunculaceae) Ranunculus Kirkii, R. Crosbyi; 

 (Umbelliferae) Schizeilema Cockaynei, Aciphylla Traillii, 



