702 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XVII. 



In spite of these imperfections, the main features of the following 

 tabic confirm our former results: — 



The most striking illustration of how little the flowering season in 

 tropical countries is determined by the temperature is furnished by the 

 flora of Ceylon. Trimen, in his " Handbook of the Flora of Ceylon," 

 o-ives such a o-ood and concise sketch of the climatic regions of that 

 island, that I think it best to reproduce here his own words : " The island 

 may he divided into three regions, distinguished hy varying amounts of 

 rain and temperature, and marked by characteristic differences in their 

 floras. And, though, it is of course the case that there are no abrupt 

 lines of demarcation, yet it is also the fact, that the great proportion of 

 our species are restricted to one or two of these climatic regions, only 

 a few occurring throughout the area. These regions are : — 



"1. The Dry Region. — This is by far the most extensive, occupying 

 nearly four- fifths of Ceylon in a continuous area, and comprising the 

 whule of the Northern, North-Central, and Eastern Provinces. The 

 whole is included in the ' low country,' and for the most part is con- 

 siderably below 1,000 feet, but a few isolated rocky hills rise out of the 

 plain, of which the following are the highest : — Ritigala 2,506 feet, Ko- 

 kagala 2,241 feet, Friar's Hood 2,148 feet, Westminster Abbey 1,829 

 feet, Gunner's Quoin 1,736 feet, Yakdessa. The rainfall nowhere 

 exceeds 75 inches per annum, and falls mostly between October and 

 January during the north-east monsoon. Portions of this region about 

 Mannar on the north-western coast and Hambatota on the south-eastern 

 have a rainfall of under 30 inches, which all falls in a short time, so that 

 they possess an almost desert climate with a long period of drought. 



" 2. The Moist Low-Country Region. — Though occupying less than 

 one-fifth of* our area, this is by far the best known, the richest, and the 

 most interesting part of the island. It comprehends the whole of the 



