88 IN LOWER FLORIDA WILDS 



of vines — "invisible wires" as Kingsley calls 

 them — to trip and occasionally throw one head- 

 long among the merciless thorns. These "wires" 

 belong to a number of species of Smilax, all of 

 which are more or less thorny; a Mikania, related 

 to the sunflower family; a Philbertella or Metas- 

 telma, which are really milkweeds; one species of 

 grape and a common morning-glory {IpomcBa 

 ca/Acriico), which latter is always abundant in the 

 thickets. The Ipomsea has no spines but its soft 

 stems hang in festoons, or lying along the ground 

 are drawn across the paths as taut as bowlines to 

 catch the unwary. It flaunts its gay blue and 

 purple flowers • everywhere and seems to take a 

 fiendish delight in tripping and throwing all who 

 defy it by venturing into the scrub. 



Formerly the hammocks at the capes were 

 full of beautiful tree snails, — the large Oxystyla 

 and two species of Liguus, but to-day very few are 

 left. Among this remnant, however, there are 

 some anomalies of distribution difficult to under- 

 stand. Liguus fasciatus, represented by several 

 varieties, is found at Middle and East capes but 

 not at Northwest Cape, but five miles distant. 

 At the latter locality it is replaced by Liguus 



