— 269 — 



belong to the mesophytic aspect, and that all except Erodium 

 Hoefftianam are species with a wide distribution; only a 

 small number of them have not also an easterly and a 

 southerly distribution in relation to Transcaspia. 



Easterly distribution is seen in the plants occurring in 

 the mountainous countries towards the East, i. e. from Hin- 

 dukush, Badakshan, Hissar, Pamir to Tibet, Tianshan and 

 Dsungaria (comp. p. 262). This category includes 372 plant- 

 species or 48 p. cent, of the total species of Transcaspia (in 

 the list the letter H occurs in their distribution-index). Of 

 these 372 species, 83 or 22 p. cent, are not distributed 

 towards the North and South (indicated in the list by H al- 

 one). Many of the 372 species occur only in Dsungaria, (as 

 to the similarity and dissimilarity between this country and 

 the Balchash-basin see p. 262). As a test of the distribulion 

 of Transcaspian lowland plants over really high mountains, 

 I have summed up the species this country has in common 

 with the Pamirs (according to the boundaries given by Olga 

 Fedtschenko). Such species are denoted in the list by H'^, 

 and there are 41 (5 p. cent, of the total number of species). 

 Only a few of these [Nitraria and a few Chenopodiaceae) 

 belong to the xerophytic aspect. They are all species of 

 wide distribution, and most of them also occur both to^Yards 

 the North and South. 



Southerly distribution is seen in plants which beyond 

 Transcaspia are distributed over larger or smaller parts of 

 Afghanistan (Badakshan, however, being reckoned as part of 

 High-Asia), Persia, Asia Minor, Syria and onwards to the 

 Mediterranean countries, including North Africa. 



There are 435 plants or 57 p. cent, with a southerly distri- 

 bution — their distribution-index in the list contains the letter V 

 — against 40 p. cent, with a northerly and 48 p. cent, with an 

 easterly distribution. Thus more than half the plants of the 

 Transcaspian lowlands have a southerly distribution. Of the 

 435 species^ 142 or 33 p. cent. (18 p. cent, of the total 

 number of species) have no distribution towards the North 

 or East, they are thus Western-Asiatic species which avoid 

 the higher mountains and the higher degrees of latitude. 

 (In the list they are indicated by V alone). Recapitulating the 



