Arctic Plants : Geographical Distribution 99 b 



In the north, in the arctic regions. De Candolle is the author of these sections,* 

 and there is only one more, Pulsatilloides, with two species, both from Cape of 

 Good Hope. From the table (Table 4), it will be seen that A. hirsutissima is the 

 only member of the section Pulsatilla represented on this continent. According 

 to Gray (Synopt. Flora I.e.) A. hirsutissima is identical with A. patens L. var. 

 Wolfgangiana Kegel, which is also recorded from several stations in the Old 

 World, viz.: Sweden, Germany, Russia, Altai, and Baikal; the only place, how- 

 ever, where it extends beyond the arctic circle is on the north coast of this 

 continent. The section is much better developed in Europe, from where six 

 species have been recorded, three of these being also indigenous to Siberia. 

 Anemone parviflora extends from Labrador and Anticosti to the Pacific slope, 

 while A. Drummondii does not occur on the Atlantic slope. With regard to A. 

 Richardsonii, this has been collected on the arctic coast, on the islands of the 

 arctic American archipelago, and at a very few stations on the west coast of 

 Greenland; by Macoun the distribution in Canada is given : "Shores of Hudson's 

 Bay; barren ground. Rocky Mountains, from Lat. 55°-68°, in wet, mossy ground 

 (Richardson, Drummond); York Factory (R. Bell)." Moreover, it occurs on 

 both coasts of Bering strait: Port Clarence, St. Lawrence bay and Konyam bay 

 (Kjellman); it has also been found in "terra Tschuktchorum" (Maydell). None 

 of the other members of Anemonanthea extend to the arctic region of this con- 

 tinent, while in Europe A. nemorosa L., and A. ranunculoides L. have both been 

 recorded from arctic Scandinavia. Among the southern types of this section 

 we notice (Table 4) that there is on this continent a small group of species which 

 show a distinct analogy to a corresponding group in Europe and Asia. I think 

 especially of A. quinquefolia, A. oregana, A. Lyallii and A. trifolia, and the 

 northern A. Richardsonii, on this continent, and of A. nemorosa li., A. ranuncu- 

 loides L., and A. trifolia L. in Europe and Asia. A. trifolia is thus common to 

 both Worlds; on this continent it is distributed from "Mountains of S. Pennsyl- 

 vania to Virginia," while in Europe it occurs in Tyrol, Steyermark, Karnthen, 

 etc.; in Siberia it is replaced by A. reflexa Steph. 



It would thus appear as if these two groups of analogous species , had 

 developed independently on both continents, since it would be very difficult, 

 if not impossible, to connect the stations so remote from each other. In other 

 words, ~the American element may have had its origin on this continent. 



The section Anemonospermos is not represented in Europe, but in Siberia 

 by a single species, A. dichotoma L. With respect to the section OmaiocarpMs, 

 only A. narcissiflora L. is represented on this continent, and in Europe, while 

 two other species are known from Asia: A. baikalensis Turcz. from Baikal, and 

 A. sibirica L. from the region of Jenisei; the section is undoubtedly of southern 

 origin, but may have developed from more than a single centre. 



With regard to the arctic representation of the genus, it would appear as if 

 the American element did not originally develop in the polar region, but farther 

 south, in the Rocky mountains, from where they migrated to the north when the 

 ice receded, A. Richardsonii even entering Greenland. In Europe the two low- 

 land species did evidently reach the arctic region at the same time, while their 

 original home can only be defined as Central Europe. 



In comparing the arctic American element of Ranunculus with that of 

 Europe and Asia, we notice at once the presence of certain genuine American 

 types on our coast, absent from the Eurasian; conversely some Eurasian types 

 present on the north coast of the Old World, but absent from the North American. 



We have thus in arctic Scandinavia and arctic Russia four distinct types: 

 R. auricomus L., R. acris L., R. repens L., and R. sceleratus L., none of which 

 are indigenous to North America except perhaps the last one; moreover, R. 

 glacialis L., which is known from the east coast of Greenland (about Lat. 74° 



' Regni vegetabilis systema naturae. Vol. 1, Paris, 1818, p. 189. 

 24657— 7i 



