28 GEOLOGY OF THE ISLE OF WIGHT 



various cycadeous plants have been found in the cor- 

 responding strata at Atherfield ; and possibly by further 

 research fresh knowledge may be gained of an intensely 

 interesting story, the history of the development of 

 flowering plants. 



On the whole the vegetation of the period was much 

 the same as in the Wealden. But these flowering cycads 

 must have formed a marked addition to the landscape, 

 if indeed they did not already exist in the Wealden times. 

 The cones of present day cycads are very splendidly 

 coloured, orange and crimson, and it can hardly be 

 doubted that the cycad flowers were of brilliant hues. 



The land animals were still like the Wealden reptiles. 

 Bones of large reptiles may at times be found on the 

 shore at Shanklin. Several have been picked up recently. 

 From the prevalence of cycads we may conclude that the 

 climate of the Wealden and Lower Greensand was sub- 

 tropical. The existing Cycadaceae are plants of South 

 Eastern Asia, and Australia, the Cape, and Central 

 America. The forest of trees allied to pines and firs and 

 cedars probably occupied the higher land. Turtles and 

 the corals point to warm waters. The existing species of 

 Trigonia are Australian shells. This beautiful shell is 

 found plentifully in Sydney harbour. It possesses a 

 peculiar interest, as the genus was supposed to be extinct, 

 and was originally described from the fossil forms, and 

 was afterwards found to be still living in Australia. 



