REPORT 



ON 



TERTIARY PLANTS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA 



COLLECTED BY MR. LAWRENCE M. LAMBE IN 1906 



TOGETHER WITH A DISCUSSION OF PREVIOUSLY RECORDED TERTIARY FLORAS 



BY D. P. PENPIALLOW, D. Sc. 



INTRODUCTION 



The material which forms the basis of the present monograph was obtained by Mr. 

 L. M. Lambe of the Geological Survey of Canada in the summer of 1906, and was trans- 

 mitted to me for determination in the following autumn. The collection embraces a very 

 large number of specimens, some of them new to their particular localities, and some of them 

 representative of hitherto undescribed species. The importance and extent of this collection 

 present a most favourable opportunity for bringing together the results of previous studies ; 

 of establishing on a more complete basis the relations of the various Tertiary floras of Canada 

 and correlating them with similar floras within the boundary of the United States ; and 

 through a comprehensive survey of the entire Tertiary floras of Canada, of answering some of 

 the questions relative to the ages of the Tertiary deposits of the western provinces. The 

 Tertiary deposits of western Canada are spread irregularly over a wide extent of territory in 

 Biitibh Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan, extending thence into the area of the western 

 United States, but with important outliers to the northward and westward in the Queen 

 Charlotte islands, northern British Columbia, Yukon territory and the region of the 

 Mackenzie River basin in the North-west Territory. Many of these outlying areas are very 

 small, and all of them are widely separated. Although much has been accomplished during 

 the last sixty years, v^'ith respect to determining the age of these bed?, it is otill an open 

 question as to the precise horizons within which they fall, and the number of successive 

 stages represented in the Tertiary as a whole. The results obtained from the present studies 

 appear to confirm in important ways conclusions already reached by Sir William Dawson, 

 Dr. G. M. Dawson, Cope, ITewberry and others, and the hope is indulged that, even if they 

 add nothing new, they may serve to more completely clear up some of the questions about 

 which there is at present reasonable doubt. 



It will be useful to indicate at the outset the extent of the collections of Tertiary plants 

 so far made and described, and in the following list these are given in connexion 

 with the authorities by whom they were determined, as also the place of publication. From 

 this it will be seen that some of the more recent collections have been reported upon but not 

 published, and they are therefore included in the present monograph as the place of first 

 publication. 



