ZONES OP ALPINE VEGETATION. 



697 



The folio-wing table by Mr. Moggridge shows the zones of Ooni- 

 ferse from the Mediterranean to the crest of the Maritime Alps ; the 

 lowest and highest elevations are given in feet : — 



Pinus Piuea 

 P. maritima 

 P. halepensis 

 Cupressus sempervirens 

 Junip'erus phoanicea 

 Pinus sylvestris 

 Abies excelsa 

 A. pectinata 

 Taxus baccata 

 Larix europiea 

 Pinus Cembra 

 Juniperus communis 



Lowest. Highest. 



— 1046 

 — , 4143 



— 2760 



— 2300 



— 4000 

 1977 5100 

 1800 3100 

 1900 3600 



— 2650 

 3500 5500 

 4600 5150 



— 6300 



The starting points from the coast embraced the line from Monaco 

 to Ventimiglia. 



In central and southern Europe the proportion of Monocotyledons 

 to Dicotyledons, which is as 1 to 4 in the 'plains, decreases with the 

 elevation on dry mountain slopes, till at the height of 85'26 feet it 

 is as 1 to 7. Moist mountain slopes favour Monocotyledons, the pro- 

 portion on them being as 1 to 3. 



The following table shows the height at .which corn and trees 

 grow in different quarters of the globe : — 



In the Himalaya, the upper limit of trees on the south side is marked 

 by Quercus semecarpifolia, at 11,500 feet, and on the north side by 

 Betula alba, at 14,000 feet. The Birch also forms the limit on the 

 Caucasian mountaius. On the Pyrenees and Alps, the limit of trees 

 is marked by Coniferse ; on the Pyrenees, by Pinus uncinata ; on the 

 south side of the Alps, by Larix europsea, the Larch ; and on the 

 north side, by Abies excelsa. In Lapland the Birch forms the upper 

 limit of trees. The upper limit of shrubs is determined by the Eho- 

 dodendrons in the Old World, on the Pyrenees at 8312 feet, and on 

 the Alps at 7480 ; and by Bejarias on the Andes, at the height of 

 13,420 feet. On the south side of the Himalaya, Juniperus, Salix, 



