408 35. SAXIFRAGACE^E. 



thus one of the most characteristic examples of the High- 

 land type. I believe to have seen it at the sea level in the 

 West Highlands. Dr. Dickie found one specimen on the 

 summit of Ben-muichk-dhu. Remarkable that it should 

 not be included in the Floras of Shetland and Orkney. 1 

 know of no plant " in the fissures of rocks, near Castle 

 Treryn," in Cornwall, which could be mistaken for this 

 Saxifrage, unless it were the Sedum Telephium ; and yet 

 the alleged habitat is highly improbable, and not confirmed. 



423. Saxifraga nivalis, Linn. 



Area ***,•(.*-* 7 * ^? * * 12 * ije 15 16. 



South limit in Caernarvonshire. 



North limit in Aberdeenshire and Isle of Skye. 



Estimate of provinces 4. Estimate of counties 10. 



Latitude 5-3 — 58. Highland tyjie of distribution. 



Arctic region. Midarctic — Superarctic zones. 



Descends to 650 or 700 yards, in East Highlands. 



Ascends to 1300 yards or upwards, in same province. 



Range of mean annual temperature 40 — 34. 



Native. Rupestral. A local example of the exclusively 

 arctic plants ; limited apparently to four provinces, and 

 very scarce in two of them, North Wales and the Lake 

 province. Possibly it may exist also within the limits of 

 Durham, in the province of Tyne ; since Mr. James Back- 

 house reports it as found by himself on High Cup Scar ; 

 ' but whether that statioft i s ^ athin - Oamborlan d ; Westmore-''^. 

 Innd; or Durham, is v^* ^if^cvly ^i^^i^A,. it is much to be ''f/*-^^'- 

 regretted that botanists who report theu' own local obser- 

 vations, so seldom do this in clearly expressed tenns. I 

 have before alluded to the low habitat of this Saxifi'age on 

 the Clova mountains (page 42), which is intended by the 



