THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 163 



Jound. The predominant formations are undoubtedly eruptive in nature, and consist, 

 in. the main, of granite and gneiss. These formations are widely spread over the whole 

 island. In the very north, at Wickham, the cliffs are formed of granite. Passing 

 south the granite on both sides of the island is hidden beneath sand-hills, but comes 

 to the surface inland, near the Yellow Kock Eiver and on the east coast at Lavinia 

 Point. All along the west part of the island it lies on the surface — passing frequently 

 into gneiss — until the Ettrick River is reached, and forming also numerous reefs 

 sunken beneath the surface of the sea. The New Year Islands, off the west coast, 

 seem to be merely a continuation of the granite in the neighbourhood of "Whistler 

 Point. They are both formed simply of granite. 



On the east side no eruptive rocks come to the surface, so far as observed, between 

 Lavinia Point and the south of Fraser Kiver, where they are very strongly developed, 

 just as is the case on the west side south of the Ettrick River. In the former they 

 assume the form of a fine grained gabbro, in which on the surface the diallage is 

 breaking down into chlorite. This rook is extremely hard, and forms the most 

 impassable part of the coast, giving place to granite further south again. In the 

 west all the country south of the Ettrick River is at the base granitic and gneissic, 

 and the outliae of the island is, in consequence, bold and rugged ; great cliffs and 

 nimiberless low-lying reefs being formed. 



On the north bank of the Ettrick, in the west, occurs a weU-marked and extensive 

 outcrop of an vipper Silurian sandstone, which extends for some distance inland, bearing 

 away towards the north-east. On the east side, again, immediately south of the 

 Fraser River, is an outcrop of what is evidently the same rock, much modified by 

 contact, doubtless, with the eruptive rocks — the gabbro — close to which it lies. There 

 can be no doubt that this bed extends right across the island from west to east, 

 though its thickness could not be ascertained. 



There is no trace whatever, so far as could be seen, of any secondary formation. 



In many parts of the island a tertiary limestone is found. It Hes directly upon the 

 .granite, and is widely distributed. Thus it was cut through (though the depth of 

 the bed was not recorded) in laying the foundation for the "Wickham lighthouse 

 before the grey granite was reached. Again an outcrop occurs half way from here 

 to Yellow Rock, and on the east coast one a little south of Lavinia Point, and 

 another at the Blow-hole Creek. On the west it is well marked on the coast 

 between the Pass and Ettrick Rivers, inland near Porky Lagoon, and again forms 

 an extensive formation on the surface inland from Fitzmaurice Bay. 



"With regard to the botany, specimens of the plants existing in the part of the 

 island passed through by the party were brought back, and have since been sub- 

 mitted to the Baroa von Mueller, who kindly promised to name them for the Club. 

 The hst* which follows the official record contains the names of these, together with 

 others previously collected upon the island, and thus includes all the plants as yet 

 recorded from the island, though, when the southern parts — especially the dense forest 

 land near the ""Wall" — is explored, the list will, doubtless, be increased. So far 

 as it goes at present, the list is seen to contaia 204 species, of which 16 are imported 

 weeds, leaving 1S7 common to "Victoria and Tasmania, and one found in Tasmania, 

 and not in Victoria. The Baron von JIueller has been good enough to write the 

 following note, with regard to one or t"no points of interest : — 



"Amongst the most interesting plants brought by the expedition of the Club is the 

 Nahiouiam cnlyceroides. As long ago as 1825 it was named and described by Cassini 

 from a specimen gathered in King Island ; only much later it was also found by Mr. 

 Gunn near Macquarie Harbour, in Tasmania. In all probability this remarkable 

 plant will yet be found near the sea-shores of Victoria. This specimen was collected 

 about five miles east of Cape "Wickham, in very wet ground bordering on the coast, 

 where a constant stream of fresh water oozes from black loam between high sand- 

 banks. It grew in society of Polypoiiipholijx (no specimen secured), iSclti-anthus hiflortis, 

 and Distichlis maritima. The samples afforded me the opportunity to note the pure 

 whiteness of the corolla and the violet tinge of the anthers. 



" Specimens of Samolus repens, an exceedingly dwarf and small-leaved, but copiously 

 flowering variety, were brought with somewhat rosy corollas, the plant, as a whole, 

 reminding one of Glaax maritima. It does not seem that mistletoes have been noticed by 

 the party, the genus Loranthus, though represented by more than one species quite to 

 the southern extremities of the Australian continent, having never yet been traced to 

 Tasmania. The whole of the vascular 'plants now known from King Island fall short 

 of 200 species, but it may be assumed that this number will be doubled when, by 

 renewed visits to the island, for which purpose the regular steam navigation between 

 Victoria and Tasmania affords so much facility, all the dense scrubs and the many 

 inland recesses shall have become penetrated by naturalists." 



The fauna is of considerably greater interest than the flora, and shows the island to 

 be Tasmanian rather than Victorian, a view which may, perhaps, receive further sup- 

 port when the list of the flora is more complete than it is at present. 



"With regard to mammals the evidence is both negative and positive. In the lowest 

 forms, the Monotremes, the platypus was not captured, but the Echidna is most 

 distinctly the hairy variety [E. sHotm) of Tasmania. There are two varieties — a light, 



* Phyllocladus rhomhoidalis has been inadvertently omitted from this list. One of the 

 Tasmanian surveyors, who some years ago was exploring in King Island, noted the 

 occurrence there of the "celery-leaved pme" in his report. 



