BOTANY OF THE LACCADIVES. 83 
Only 47 species are woody, 20 of these being trees, 25 shrubs, and 2 climbers, Of 
the 20 trees, 15 are cultivated species ; 4 of the remaining 5 are “littoral.” Of the 
159 herbaceous species, 119 are herbs proper, 28 are climbers,and 12 are of the class 
of ‘tree-herbs” or ‘ shrub-herbs” like JZusa or Carica end Agave or Calotropis. 
From the nature of the group we are led to expect that none of the species are 
really indigenous ; further, that the majority of the species must have been intro- 
duced by man, and that next to human agency that of the sea has been most active. 
Detailed examination confirms these anticipations, for we find that as many as 
127 species (three-fifths of the whole flora) are species that have been introduced 
by man. Of these, 52, or a fourth of the whole flora, are purely cultivated 
plants ; 7 others that appear mostly in an apparently wild state are likewise cul- 
tivated ; 4 that are cultivated occur occasionally as escapes. These figures refer 
to plants grown for economic reasons, but there are 13 other species that are 
“ oarden escapes’ in the more usual sense, being bright-flowered or sweet-smelling 
' species originally grown deliberately. The remaining 64 species are mere weeds. 
Of the balance, the larger moiety (41 species or one-fifth of the whole flora) 
consists of “‘ littoral’? sea-introduced species; the remainder includes 9 marsh 
or water species (a very small proportion of the flora) and 27 inland species. 
The people of Minikoi cultivate 40 species as against 24 cultivated in Ameni, 
18 in Anderut, 13 in Akati, 13 in Kiltén and11in Kadamum. The figures 
for the other islands are not at all complete. Doubtless, for some of these they are 
imperfect, but there is no reason to doubt that the numbers given are approxi- 
mately true ; they place the islands in a series which accords very well with the 
general accounts that have been given by those who have visited the islands, of 
the relative wealth and comfort of the people. 
The cultivation of most of the species is the direct result of the intercourse 
of the people with the Indian mainland, perhaps the chief exception is their use 
of the South Sea Islanders’ Taro (Tacca pinnatifida), Of the cultivated plants, 10 
are originally American, 5 originally African, 2 originally Chinese, the rest either 
Indian or Indo-Malayan ; the cultivation of nearly all the species is now, however, 
cosmopolitan in the tropics. 
The weeds, like the cultivated plants, are by no means evenly distributed 
throughout the Archipelago. Of the whole 64 species, as many as 20 are reported 
from only one island ; even if we allow for the possibility of a species having 
been here and there overlooked, the proportion is very high. Without going 
into too ereat detail, it may be noted that 8 of these weeds—one-eighth of the 
weed-list-—are reported only from Minikoi ; more remarkable still, 31 species— 
very nearly one-haif the ist—occur in one or other of Laccadives proper, but not 
in Minikoi. The meaning of this is not very clear; it may be partly due to 
there being no large waste area in Minikoi, as there is for instance in Kadamum; 
perhaps, too, the people hold less intercourse with India than do those of the other 
