The History of the Flora. j 327 
Finally, ceme thso question of multiple origins. This is rarely seriously 
advocated at the present time, but, strange to say, in pre- Darwinian days, 
it was a common belief, though there was not a shred of evidence to show 
how such a phenomenon could take place. But in the present state of know- 
ledge, there seems to me no reason, according to any accepted theory of i 
evolution, and especially to the doctrine of mutation, why polygenesis should 
not take place occasionally. It would, of course, occur most frequently with 
regard to families and genera, and specific polygenesis would be a rare occur- 
rence. 
2. The History of the Flora. 
During the mesozoic period, according to MARSHALL (1912: 35), New Zea- 
land was the “shore-line of a continent that stretched far to the westward and 
probably united New Zealand with Australia”. 
From the fossils that have been collected at Waikato Heads, Clent Hills 
and Mt. Potts (Canterbury) and Southland, it is evident that a rich vegetation 
clothed New Zealand in Jurassic times consisting of ferns, Zguisetaceae, Pkri- 
dosperms and Coniferae, petrified remains of a forest of the latter still persisting 
at Curio Bay. According to ARBER’), Glossopteris was absent, so that New 
Zealand was not a portion of “Gondwanaland”, but it was represented by a 
3 homaeomorph ZLinguifolium Lillieanum, a close relation. of a Chilean species. 
e Other Jurassic species are a species of Bazera allied a Swedish Rhaetic plant, 
Taeniopteris Daintreei (also Australian), Chzropteris lacerata, Cladopkhlebis aus- 
tralis, Palissya conferta (Indian but also occurring in Graham Land), Osmun- 
dites Gibbiana and O. Dunlopi. Probably the climate was much warmer than 
at the present time. 
At the close of the Trias-Jura period, the Biesason rocks were folded 
and a great rise together with an extension of the land took place. Such evo- 
lution processes, as were taking place in other parts of the world, would go Bas 
on continuousiy and many New Zealand species &c. be evolved and e. 
take place with the neighbouring lands. How far Greater New Zealand extended 
in the early Tertiary, no one can say, but it most likely embraced New Cale- 
donia in the N. and probably went much further. In the S., it would cer- 2, 
tainly reach Campbell Island and it may have gone far beyond. At this time, 3 
the palaeotropic element would people the N. while the S. perhaps con- 2 
siderably warmer than to-day would receive invaders from Subantarctic lands ei 
and, simultaneousiy many of the palaeozelandic genera come into being. =. 
| emnants of this rich ancient flora occur in many localities, especially i in 
Otago and Southland. The fossils have been studied by ETTINGHAUSEN, who 
refers some to various Northern genera which one would not expect in the 
ern  Hemisphere, especially Arne e. 8: — — Myrica, Fr Quereus, | 
4 
w 
1) A A Preliminary Note on the Fossil Plants of the oe‘ Potts Beds, New Ze a) anc n Collien 
...by M8:D:G, BE: a to sen Seott’s Aütereie. t ie Expedition in. the “Terra on 
RS. 13: 344 n 
% 
