56 D. Prain — Flora of ISTarcondam and Barren Island. [.No. 2, 



examples of Ficus Bumphii and Ficus vitida, with a considerable 

 number of Ficus cuspidifera. The two Dioscoreas are very common 

 climbers ; Gapparls sepiaria is exceedingly common as a climber, or 

 rather as an under-shrub, in the forest ; Gloriosa superba was seen in 

 the sea-face jungle on the east side of the island ; Adiantun lunu- 

 latum, another species not seen in N"arcondam, is very common on 

 the outside of the outer cone. On bare rocks near the sea Boerhiavia. 

 repens is plentiful, and species of the littoral class noted at the points 

 where landings were effected include Hibiscus tiliaceus, Sterculia rubi- 

 ginosa, Colubrina asiatica, Ixora brunnescens, Pluchea indica, Wedelia 

 scandens, Scoevola Koenigii, Premna integrifolla, Glochidion calocarpum, 

 Gelonium bif avium. Terminalia Gatappa, a truly littoral species, spreads 

 here from base to top of the outer cone ; the same is true of Morinda 

 bracteata, another plentiful sea-coast species. Oocos and Pandanus have 

 been already mentioned as occurring only at Anchorage Bay. 



The question regarding the Coco-nut trees on Barren Island is some- 

 what simpler than in the case of JSTarcondam, for they have not been deli- 

 berately planted : at the same time it cannot be contended that they 

 afford an unequivocal instance of introduction by the sea. It is not clear 

 that any one has ever landed at Anchorage Bay ;* it is certain that for 

 the greater part of the year, to attempt to do so would be very danger- 

 ous. At the same time when ships call they usually anchor at this 

 place, and it is not improbable that during some such visit a coco-nut 

 dropping overboard has been Avashed ashore and germinated in the drift 

 collected by the roots of the sea-fence. Man indirectly, rather than 

 the sea, may therefore be supposed to have been the introducing agent. 



Fungi were as scarce on Barren Island as in ISTarcondam, and the 

 only moss met with was Bryum coronatum. 



To complete the account of these islands mention must be male of 

 Flat Rock, situated, as has been already mentioned, in Lat. 11° 12' N., 

 and Lon. 93° 86' E., 80 miles south-south-west of Barren Island, 50 



* From the Report of the Andamans' Committee already referred to (Proceedings, 

 As. Soc Bengal, 1866, p 215), it would appear that their experience was quite that of 

 the writer. The passage is interesting and is worth quoting verbatim : — " The only 

 " place where there seemed any chance, was on the south-west, where a small 

 " sandy beach, with a heavy surf running, was discovered, above which four old 

 " cocoa-nut trees were seen. A boat was sent towards the shore and got bottom at 35 

 " fathoms, but as we had not much time to spare, the whole of the ground could 

 " not be gone over, * * *." The italics are the writer's ; the passage will be referred 

 to again in the systematic list of the plants collected. It is strange that though 

 from the year 1866 onwards these coco-nut trees have been used as the guide-mark 

 to the safest anchorage on the coast of this island, neither Hume, Ball nor Mallet, in 

 their accounts of the island, have noted their presence. 



