52 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [JULY 
by a succession of low mountain ranges, such as the Agua Dulce, 
Pinacate, and Santa Clara Mountains. The soil is particularly sub- 
ject to the action of the wind, but the irregular consistency of the 
sand allows the formation of moving dunes or ‘‘sables” in a few 
localities only near the delta. Mounds of a few meters in height, 
held together by the roots of Ephedra, Covillea, and other shrubs, 
are numerous, however, such mounds being due either to the erosion 
of the soil around them, or to its accumulation and retention by the 
Fic. 4.—View in Salton Basin, California; the surface of the soil is thickly incrusted 
with Saline matter in the open spaces; the vegetation consists chiefly of Spirostachys 
and Atriplex. 
clumps of plants. In addition to the few herbaceous annuals which 
arise during the season favorable for growth, the principal types are 
perennials with spinose branches and reduced deciduous leaves; 
although a few species with hardy leaves are included. Ephedra, . 
Gaertneria albicaulis, Oenothera claviformis, Lupinus mexicana; 
Abronia villosa, Astragalus Vaseyi, Plantago scariosa, Langloisia 
Schottii, Stillingia annua, Asclepias subulata, and Fouquieria splen- 
dens are typical examples; while a few forms with deeply lying bulbs 
are also found here, including Hesperocallis montana (fig. 5). 
