28-; 



APPENDIX. I. 

 CYPERACEAE, NORTHERN TERRITORY. 



BY 



A. A. HAMILTON, Botanical Assistant, 



National Herbarium, N.S.W 



With the notable exception of the genus Carex, referred to below, the Indo- 

 ^lalayan flora is well represented in the Northern Territory, all the genera 

 listed, together with a generous percentage of species, are included in the flora of 

 India. Examples from both these regions exhibit considerable facial divergence 

 within a species, the morphological characters commonly used for diagnostic 

 purposes exhibiting an extreme range of variafion. This feature is also ex- 

 ceptionally marked in examples from different localities in both countries. 

 Geographical variation in this family is noted by Bentham (B. Fl. vii., 280), 

 under Gyperus rotundus, L. Discussing variation in this cosmopolitan 

 species, he notes a wide range in height, irregularity of the inflorescence, length 

 of spikelets, and number of flowers thereon, &c., in plants from various stations 

 within Australia, and says. loc. cit. : '' This species is abundantly spread over the 

 tropical and temperate regions of the Old and New World, varying in many 

 places, as much as in Australia." Bentham also refers to the difficulties attend- 

 ant upon the classification of this widely distributed family, in his carefully 

 compiled prefatory notes on Cyperaceae. The numerous synonyms incorpor- 

 ated by modern monographers (see C. B. Clarke on Cyperaceae in Hook, Fl. 

 Brit. Ind., 7), accentuate the difficulties encountered when dealing with such 

 an imperfectly known Cyperaceous flora as that obtaining in Northern Australia. 



THE TRIBES. 



The accompanying list of members of the family Cyperaceae in the North- 

 ern Territory includes representatives of all the genera noted in the tribe 

 Scirpeae. 



Tribe ii. — Hypolytnae is not represented. 



Tribe iii. — Bhynchospora which contains the important genera,. 

 Schoenus, Lepidosperma, Cladium, Gahnia, &c., is repre- 

 sented by but one genus (Schoemis), and that by an individual 

 species. 



Tribe iv.- — Sclerieae also contains but one genus {Scleria), from N.A,, 

 with a single species. 



Tribe v. — Carireae, in which the numerically large and widelv-dis- 

 tributed genus Carex finds a place, is not represented in the' flora 

 of the Northern Territory. This hiatus becomes more remarkable 

 from the fact that some 160 species (exclusive of the large number 

 which have been reduced to synonyms) are described by C. B. 

 Clarke in Hooker's Fl. Brit. Ind. 



