Remarks ou the most Important Plant-Societies of the Island. 



213 



left alone by civilization, a summary is here given of the plants g-rowing in the "river" crossing the 

 main road immediately to the east of Kuklia in Messaria: The vegetation which was rather dense, consisted 

 chiefly of Qarex divisa. C. distans subsp. h'mcrviformis, Scirpus jHduster, Equisetum ramosissimum var. 

 pannonicinn along with Melilotu.s messanensis, Geranium disscctum and Ranunculus lomatocarjmfi. Not so 

 frequent were Junam acutus, Scirjnis maritimus and Inula viseosa. Growing between these comparatively 

 high plants smaller species were to bo seen, such as Driza minor, Junaig Inifonius, Scirjms cernuun, 

 Spergularia salina, and others. 



The following seem to be the most important species growing in the wet meadows of Cyprus: 



Eqinsetum sdvaficum 



Phalaris paradoxa 



Oryzopsis miliacea 



Alopecitrus antho.raiifhoidcs 



Briza minor 



Scirpus cernuus 



Corex dioisa 



C. distans subsp. Jnnenifonnis 



C. acutiformis 



Arum hygrophihim 



Juncus bufonius 



J. Fontanesii 



Orchis coriophorns subsp. fragrnns and 



subsp. sanctus 

 Glinus lotoides 

 Stcllaria cilicica 

 Cerasti'um anomahim 

 Eammculus Ficaria subsp. caltharfolius 

 R. muricutits 



Rantmculus lumatocarpus 



R. parvifiorus 



R. chins 



Lcpidinm hdifolium 



Coronopus verrucurins 



Melilotus indica 



M. messanensis 



Tri folium echinatiim 



T. fragiferum 



Loins pnlnsiris 



Geranium dissectum 



Erythraea pulchella 



Brunella ralgaris 



Mentha longifolia 



Veronica Anagallis 



Innla niscosa 



Fulicaria sicida 



P. dyscnterica subsp. deiitata 



Odontospcrmum nquaticum 



To these may be added several of the species that have been enumerated before as belonging to 

 the reedy plants' society; othei-s will be mentioned below as belonging to the vegetation of springs and 

 fountains; many of these species may appear in spongy meadows as well. 



d. Vegetation of Springs and Fountains. The fact, that Cyprus is comparatively poor in springs, 

 has been more precisely explained above as well as the fact, that most of the springs are met with in the 

 mountains. Perhaps this is just the reason, why to the travelling botanist having visited the island in 

 the summer, these springs will form some of his most agreeable i-ecollections from his visit. Not only will 

 he think of many a pleasant resting-place in the middle of the day shadowed by platanes after his tiring 

 excursions and many a cooi aud refreshing draught of water in hot summer days ; but in the more advanced 

 part of the summer, when every other herbaceous vegetation has dried up, these springs and their sur- 

 roundings adopt the character of veritable oases in the desolate landscape. Even in late autumn one may 

 find a freshly green vegetation here, enlivened by white, red, blue and yellow flowers, while in the sur- 

 rounding hills the vegetation has been scorched altogether by the burning sun. 



Of real aquatics I have in these spi'ings only found some algae, which I have not, however, examined 

 more closely. Only a Chara occurring abundantly in the springs near Pharmakas and Vavatsinia, has been 

 determined through the kind assistance of Prof. Dr. O. Nordstedt; it appeared to belong to Ch. gymno- 

 phylla A. Bkaun, a Southern species (or according to the opinion of others, a subspecies of Ch. foetida). 



The vegetation round about the springs, the water of which is constantly oozing over the ground, 

 is a genuine marshy vegetation. It is most closely connected with the wet meadows described above, with 

 which it has many species in common; several other species are, however, to be added, occurring exclu- 



