1903] FLORA OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 263 
THE INSULAR FLORA. 
The islands of Santa Catalina and San Clemente, situated 
some twenty miles off the seacoast, have floras of great interest. 
They are parts of that general coast-island flora which has 
received no little attention, not only by reason of certain anoma- 
lous elements in its composition, but as well from the problems 
of origin and affinity to which these give rise. 
It has been contended that the coast islands are the emergent 
peaks of a submerged continent, still retaining the vestiges of 
its peculiar vegetation. Emergent peaks they certainly are, but 
a more reasonable theory regards them as belonging, not to 
another continent, but to a chain of mountains paralleling the 
present Coast Range, now, save for them, sunk beneath the 
waters of the ocean, whose waves roll over what was once a 
broad valley separating the two ranges. Under this theory the 
peculiar insular plants, such as Lyonothamnus and the species of 
Lavatera, are to be regarded as the remnants of a flora, antedat- 
ing the period of subsidence, once common to the whole coast 
region. Preserved by its isolation on the islands, it has per- 
ished on the main-land, or is, perhaps, still feebly represented 
by a few species, such as Pinus Torreyana and Euphorbia misera, 
which retain a precarious foothold along the coast.” 
© The following papers will be found of interest to those desirous of studying 
the insular floras and their relationship and probable origin: 
RANDEGEE, T. S.—Convolvulus occidentalis. Zoe 1:85. Plants of Santa 
Catalina sae Zoe 1:107. Flora of the Californian islands. Zoe 1:129. Lav- 
atera —is it an ‘ohenee sua ? Zoe 1:188. Flora of the Santa Barbara Islands. 
Proc. Cal. A I. 2220 
isa Geos — The su page nig of the coast of California, U.S. 
A., and of Lower poe Mexico. c. Cal. Acad. III. Geo. 
GREENE, E. L.— Notes on the Were of efit gt see pase “Cal. Acad. 
2:377. A botanical excursion to the island of San Miguel. Pittoni 274, 
LE ConTE, JosEPH.—The flora of the coast islands of penal in relation to 
recent changes a geography. Bull. Cal. Acad. 2: 377: 5 
ee ora of our southwestern archipelago. Bor. Gaz : 197, 230. 
PaRIsH, S. B.— The Pacific Lavateras. Zoe I: 300. Southern petite of the 
range of eal Scoulert. fan erm 40. 
roe BLANCHE.— Field notes from Santa Catalina Island. Erythea 7: 128: /3 
Watson, S.— Flora of aie Island, Lower California. Proc. Am. Acad. 
II: 105. 
Yates, L. G.— Stray notes on the epee of the Channel] Islands. Rept. Cal. 
State Mineral. g:171. Insular floras. 
