Description of the Eriodendron vegetation. 285 



Saba. 



On Saba the Eriodendronvegetation is well developed in the guts 

 and those parts of the lower slopes of the hills which are not 

 used for cultivation. The plants typical for this vegetation are 

 Eugenia axillaris, Pisonia obtusata, Anona muricata, Stenolobium 

 Stans, Lantana Camara, Tournefortia foetidissima, Chiococca race- 

 mosa, Trema Lamarckiana, Pithecolobium unguis-cati, AUophylus 

 occidentalis, Nectandra Krugii, Schoepfia Schreberi, Capparis cyno- 

 phallophora, Casearia parvifolia, Hyperbaena domingensis, Pisonia 

 aculeata, Celtis Iguanacea, Symplocos martinicencis, Coccoloba 

 diversifolia, Myrcia coriacea, Tabernaemontana citrifolia, Coccoloba 

 nivea, Capparis frondosa, Chrysobalanus icaco, Inga laurina, Ery- 

 throxylon havanense, Picrasma antillana, Daphnopsis caribaea, 

 Amomis caryophyllata, Clusia alba, Miconia laevigata, Ardisia 

 coriacea, Citharexylum quadrangulare, Cestrum laurifolum, Tecoma 

 leucoxylon, Psychotria rufescens. 



It must however be understood that there are but few parts of 

 Saba where the Eriodendronvegetation has the same feature as 

 that of the northern hilly country of St. Eustatius. Whereas the 

 shrubs of the latter contain some Myrtaceae, these plants do 

 not occur in Saba in a great quantity; the trees that give a 

 typical aspect to the Quill vegetation viz. Linociera compacta, 

 Nectandra coriacea, do not occur on Saba except sporadically. 

 There is however another part of the Eriodendronvegetation in 

 Saba covering the higher tops of the Mointain, where the typical 

 plants of a real tropical rainforest occur. 



The greater part of the plants we meet in this part of Saba are 

 not known from St. Eustatius and St. Martin and chiefly occur 

 in Guadaloupe and other Antilles with high mountains. The feature 

 of this rainforest is given to it by the Treeterns: Hemitelia hor- 

 rida, Alsophila phalerata, Cyathea serra, Cyathea arborea together 

 with Euterpe. 



On the most humid localities occur: Psychotria pendula, Hillia 

 parasitica, Marcgravia umbellata, Heliconia Bihai, Fagara martini- 

 censis, Nectandra Krugii, Psychotria rufescens, Besleria lutea, 

 Gesneria ventricosa, Charianthus crinitus, Peperomia emarginella, 

 Peperomia urocarpa, Peperomia hernandifolia, Hymenophyllum 

 hirtellum, Trichomanes alatum, Polypodium trichomanoides, Utri- 

 cularia alpina, Ornithidium coccineum. The soil is densely covered 

 by: Dryopteris parasitica, Dryopteris reticulata, Aspidium Plu- 

 mierii, Aspidium trifoliatun, Polybotrya cervina, Neptrolepis exal- 



