CHAPTER III 

 THE FLORAL ENVIRONMENT 



I shall discuss the vegetation of deserts, not as a 

 botanical problem, but because the plants are a 

 very important element in the environment of the 

 fauna. It will be appreciated that many of the 

 characteristics of desert plants which are of great 

 interest to the botanist, and to the study of which 

 notable contributions have been made, appear to 

 matter but Uttle to the zoologist, who is interested 

 not in the plants themselves, but in the plants 

 considered as a part of the surroundings of the desert 

 animals. It would be rash to say that such things 

 as the pitted stomata and highly concentrated sap 

 of plants growing in dry places do not affect the 

 fauna, but at any rate it is not at present apparent 

 that they do so. I have therefore omitted these 

 and a number of other points to which the botanists 

 have devoted attention. 



It is impossible to draw up such a description of 

 desert scenery and vegetation as would be appHcable 

 to the deserts of aU the continents and both the 

 hemispheres. It is, however, true to say that the 

 prevaiHng tint for the greater part of the year is 

 that of the soil, for the plants grow so far from one 



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