Beccari and Rock — Pritchardia. 13 



The distribution of the various species of Pritchardia occurring on the 

 islands of the Hawaiian group from Nihoa to Hawaii proper, is sketched in the 

 following pages. 



I, AYS AN ISLAND. 



A single short-stemmed species of Pritchardia has been recorded from 

 Laysan Island and also photographed by zoological collectors, but no specimens 

 were collected, and therefore the identity of that palm cannot be ascertained. It 

 would be very interesting indeed to learn the identity of the Laysan palm, which, 

 according to the photograph examined, is a rather young plant, and must have 

 reached that island through ocean currents. This would prove that Pritchardia 

 seeds may be disseminated by ocean currents ; that they are immune to the effects 

 of salt Avater; and that the}' keep their germinating power for a considerable 

 period. Laysan Island is strictly a coral island of Ioav elevation. The palm found 

 there was recorded as Pr. Gandichaudii, but that is an error as all small fruited 

 species were regarded as belonging to Pritchardia Gandichaudii, and all large 

 fruited species to Pritchardia Martii irrespective of the shape of the fruit, size 

 of flowers and leaves and number of panicles in each spadix and whether the 

 latter was glabrous or woolly or tomentose. It is very probable that the species 

 found on Laysan is identical with Pritchardia reinota Becc, a small fruited 

 species found on Nihoa, a volcanic island, and not far distant from Laysan. 



NIHOA OR BIRD ISLAND. 



Nihoa is a volcanic island, situated in latitude 23° 05' 50" N. and longitude 

 161'' 56' 30" W., and is about 400 miles north east of Kauai, considered the oldest 

 island of the Hawaiian group. Little is known of the i^ora of Nihoa, but all navi- 

 gators have reported a grove of palms. There are in fact several clumps of 

 palms including about 150 individuals, growing in a sort of valley which extends 

 from sea level to the top of the island which is 880 feet in height. Through the 

 kindness of Captain Brown of the Lhiited States Revenue Cutter "Thetis," I 

 secured complete material of the interesting and distinct species, described by 

 Beccari as Pritchardia rcmota. The photograph obtained by Captain Brown 

 is not suitable for reproduction, but it shows that the plants are exposed to the 

 trade winds and gales; that the stems are flexuose and the crown very much 

 ruffled. 



Seeds of this species were first brought from Nihoa to Honolulu by a 

 Doctor Rooke in 1858, and a tree grown from seed was planted in the Palace 

 yard, now the grounds of the Executive Building. 



KAUAI. 



The island of Kauai is circular in outline and is composed of a central 

 mountain mass which culminates in Mt. Waialeale at .a height of 5250 feet. The 

 leev.ard side slopes gently towards the sea and is intersected by deep canyons. 



