. 
1922] CURRENT LITERATURE 423 
aman endemics.—The Bahama Islands have been found to possess an 
endemic flora of some 185 species, or rather more than fourteen per cent of the 
entire plant population. There is but a single endemic genus, however, 
Neobracea, belonging to the Apocynaceae. A careful analysis of the situation 
by Taytor® shows that the distribution of these forms does not coincide wit 
the “age and area” hypothesis of WILLIS, nor do the distribution and growth 
forms of the endemic differ materially from those of the non-éndemic species. 
Moreover, the comparatively youthful land surface seems to preclude the idea 
of any considerable number of relic species. Taytor is thus forced to the 
conclusion that the endemics are due largely to the rather direct influence of 
the somewhat peculiar set of external factors that include sterile and often 
saline soil, deficient rainfall, strong trade winds varied by violent hurricanes, 
and possibly certain other factors.—Gro. D. FULLER. 
Action of lichens on glass.—Doubt has sometimes been cast on the capacity 
of lichens to disintegrate the harder rocks. In this connection Miss MELLOR® 
reports the occurrence of twenty-two forms growing on the glass of church 
windows in France. The plants not only etched the glass, but produced pits 
up to o.5 cm. in diameter and as much as 1.6 mm. deep, in the process chipping 
off fine fragments which became imbedded in their tissues. The action is 
explained as a purely mechanical result of the solution in rain water of the CO, 
excreted as a result of the respiration of the lichens, and is very slow, but the 
conclusion is drawn that plants able to attack glass in this way would have a 
similar disorganizing effect on rocks. In fact, one of the species found growing 
on glass was also found growing on slate, in which situation fine chips of slate 
were incorporated in the thallus.—G. W. Martin. 
Zodlogisch-Botanische Gesellschaft.—This society is one of the oldest and 
most famous of the natural science societies of Europe. In order to continue 
its existence, it is compelled to sell some of its herbarium collections. In view 
of this need we publish the following notice received from Vienna: 
“For sale—a valuable collection of mosses containing more than 1000 
European species, including about 12,000 fine specimens collected by famous 
bryologists, as ee Witson, De Noraris, LINDBERG, JURATZKA, 
MotLenpo, Lorentz, BREIDLER, many of them being types. The collection 
also sate several ‘hundred members of old rare exsiccatae, as, for example, 
RaBENHorsT, Bryotheca Europaea. Offers should be sent to the Zoblogisch- 
oasis Gesellschaft, III/3, Mechelgasse 2, Vienna, Austria.” 
*® Taytor, NorMAN, Endemism in the Bahama flora. Ann. Botany 35:523-532. 
2I 
7 MELLor, ETHEL, Les lichens vitricoles et leur action mécanique sur less vitraux 
@église. Comptes Rend. Acad. Sci. 173: 1106-1108. 1921 
