THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST, 163 



EXCURSION TO PLENTY RANGES. 

 This year the usual Eoundation Day excursion was arranged for 

 the Plenty Ranges, vid Whittlesea, with the hope that the Club 

 would be permitted to explore the water reserves situated there, 

 and make use of the Metropolitan Board of Works' house accommo- 

 dation in the district. On making representations to the Board 

 these facilities were kindly granted, and arrangements were then 

 entered into for the party to spend nearly a couple of days at 

 Wallaby Creek House, which is situated on the northern side of 

 the Dividing Range, almost behind Mt. Disappointment. On 

 meeting at Spencer-street station on Friday morning, the 26th 

 January, the leader was gratified at being able to welcome such a 

 representative party of members, and all prominent men in their 

 several branches. Ornithology had two representatives, entomo- 

 logy two, botany two, and pond-life one ; and notwithstanding the 

 promise of a hot day we formed a merry party as the train 

 traversed its weary way to Whittlesea (27 miles), where we 

 lunched before starting on our six-mile drive. From Whittlesea 

 the ranges appear closer than that, owing to the intervening 

 country being very flat. At length we were off, and in half 

 an hour reached the entrance to the water reserves. Here 

 we got a glimpse of the Toorourrong Reservoir, formed at the 

 junction of the eastern branch of the Plenty River and Jack's 

 Creek — a truly pretty spot. We now took the track towards 

 " the Cascades," and were soon passing through the usual 

 vegetation of the altitude of 600 to 800 feet, but presently a 

 number of the larger Grass-trees, Xanthorrhoea australis, also 

 Lomatia ilicifolia, with its delicate creamy flowers, indicated that 

 we were gradually ascending, and soon our vehicles came to a 

 stop at a pretty bend in Jack's Creek, where it is joined by a 

 miniature tributary known as Smith's Gully. Here we left the 

 conveyances, arranging to meet them at the same place on Sunday 

 afternoon. The track from here makes a steep ascent up a spur 

 from the main range, and in springtime is bordered with many 

 lovely flowers, such as JEpacris impressa, Grevillea alpina, 

 Eriostemon correifolius, Acacias, &c. Hov/ever, we took a bridle 

 path alongside the creek, as affording a pleasanter walk on a hot 

 afternoon. We had now to shoulder our impedimenta for a six- 

 mile walk, in the first mile of which we should ascend nearly 

 1,000 feet. Just at the commencement of the track a magnificent 

 group of King Ferns, Osmunda {Todea) harhara, attracted our 

 attention, and presently other smaller species were noted. The 

 other side of the creek was a dense mass of vegetation of the 

 usual kinds found in our fern gullies. Senecio vagus brightened 

 the scrub with its large yellow flowers, while the white-topped 

 Cassinia aculeata was everywhere, but yielded no results to 

 our entomologists' vigorous shaking. Our ornithologists noted 



