674 Part IV. Chapter 7. 
Where the rocky strata reach the shore, the waves have worn them into their present irre- 
gular Sea Cliff Fo rmation. on such rocky shores in southern Cuba grow Canavalia obtusi- 
folia, Opuntia tuna, Rachicallis rupestris, Tournefortia gnaphalodes, Phyllanthus epiphyllanthus, 
Ayenia pusilla, Bursera angustata, Erythroxylum brevipes, Malpighia urens var. lanceolata, Picro- 
dendron arboreum, Ceanothus reclinata, Glirieidia platycarpa, Sophora tomentosa, Ateleia apetala, 
Bourreria montana, Alternanthera .muscoides. 
The sterility of the river bottoms and river deltas south of the Sierra 
Maestra of Cuba is a marked feature of the country. With the exception of 
species of Plumiera and a few other species such areas are without trees. 
A rank growth of shrubs gives the whole river bottom a characteristic appea- 
rance not unlike “the scrub” of the Bahama islands, according to TAYLOR '). 
Along the streams in the Isle of Pines, according to ROWLEE ?), and 
elsewhere in Cuba, the vegetation shows in the River Bank Formation the 
least xerophytic tendency and closely approaches the conditions found in humid 
tropic regions. The trees are mostly large. Palms abound, also shrubs of 
many kinds. Several plants of the banana family occur here together with many 
ferns and orchids. 
The gorges of the south side of the Sierra Maestra of Cuba, according to 'TAYLOR are 
profusely covered with vegetation. Here occur Campyloneuron angustifolium, C. phylliditis, C. 
‚ Polypodium polypodioides (= P. incanum), P. plumula, Philodendron lacerum, Renealmia 
oceidentalis, Epidendrum cochleatum, Peperomia acuminata, P. obtusifolia, P. rotundifolia, P. scan- 
ens, Boehmeria littoralis, Pilea nudicaulis, P. mierophylla, Rojania hastata, Picramnia pentandra, 
Pavonia typhalaea, Gilibertia arborea, Wallenia laurifolia, Asclepias nivea, Solanum triste, Hamelia 
lutea, Psychotria lasiopthalma, Chiococca racemosa, Dicliptera assurgens, Adenostemma Berteri, 
The abundance of water in these gorges in contrast to the slopes produces a luxuriant flora and 
through the decay of generations of these plants a rich damp soil has been formed. 
Mud swamps are found at several places in the island of Cuba, as at 
Cienfuegos °). Little is known about them; except that here grows the large 
fern, usually in pure association, Acrostichum aureum. No information is 
available as to the association of plants in the rivers and freshwater 
lagoons of Cuba, but the following aquatic plants of southern Cuba presumably 
are important elements in such associations: Nasturtium officinale, Nymphaea 
ampla var. pulchella, Fussiaea repens, Utricularia spirandra, Sagittaria inter- 
media, Potamogeton fluitans, Naias guadalupensis and Marsilia polycarpa. 
Savanna Formation. The savannas are wooded grass lands, grading into 
upland woods on the one hand, and into what are called “maniguas,” and 
prairies with scattered clumps of bushes, on the other, and varying with the 
soil, as to whether, it is red, gravelly, or black. According to ROWLEE, the 
savannas in the Isle of Pines may be wet, or dry. The dry savannas ex- 
tend to the uplands and have steadily increased in size as the natives have 
burned them over to improve the pasturage. Besides sedges and grasses, 
ı) Torreya VO: 53. 
2) RowLer, W. W.: See Bibliogr. p. gt and Ecological Conditions of Plant Growth in the 
Isle of Pines. Science new ser. XVII: 461. 
3) Comss, ROBERT: Distriet of Cienfuegos, see Bibliography p. 88. 
