THE BAHAMA ISLANDS 331 



glauca Knnth, with a diameter of 18 inches and a height of 40 feet. Almost 

 as large was Pera humeliafolia Griseb. and Sivietenia mahogani Jacq., with a 

 diameter of 1 foot and a height of 35 feet. The mahogany was badly ringed 

 with sapsucker holes and it was also the only tree attacked by Phorodendron. 

 Cinnecord, butter-bongh and Tecoma, which are generally low and scrubby, 

 were here tall and slender, with a height of 30 to 35 feet. 



2. Low-coppice Formation. — This covers most of the northern slope of 

 the Blue Hills and a large part of the flat country on the north and east sides 

 of the island. In a drive from Nassau to Mt. Vernon and around by Village 

 road and Wolf road one passes through a typical low coppice growth. The soil 

 is Bahama black-loam of the variety known as " plate rock," discussed in the 

 chapter on the Soils of the Bahama Islands. A few trees, such as Bursera 

 simaruba (L.) Sarg. (Gum-elemi), Metopium metopium (L.) Small (Poison- 

 wood), Dipliolis salicifolia A. DC. (Wild cassada), and Swietenia mahogani 

 Jacq. (^lahogany), project occasionally above the general level, but even these 

 are much smaller than in the High-coppice. The average height of the covering 

 is about 10 to 15 feet, and a great variety of species struggle with each other 

 here for the scanty sustenance that the rocks afford. 



Among the small trees and scrubs, which are the predominant growth, the 

 following are common: Exothea paniculaia (Juss.) Kadlk., Bourreria havan- 

 ensis (L.) Miers, Coccolobis la/wrifolia Jacq., Ilypelate trifoliata Sw., Bumelia 

 loranthifolia (Pierre) Britton, Savia hahamensis Britton, Erithalis fruticosa 

 L., Hamatoxylon campechianum L., Picramnia pentcmdra Sw., Byrsonima 

 lucida (Sw.) DC, Macreightia carihcea A. DC, Anastraphia northropiana 

 Grenm., Tecoma hahamensis Northrop, Torrubia longifolia (Heimerl) Brit- 

 ton, Torrubia obtusata (Jacq.) Britton, Psychotria undata Jacq., Ocoiea cates- 

 byana (Michx.) Sarg., Fagara fagara (L.) Small, Duranta repens L., Leu- 

 ccena glauca (L.) Benth. , a.nd Krugiodendron ferreum (Vahl.) Urban. Helic- 

 teres spiralis Northrop, Melicocca bijuga L. and Croton eleuteria Sw. are less 

 often seen. 



The principal vines are Triopteris rigida Sw., Jacquemontia jamaicensis 

 (Jacq.) Hall, Smilax beyrichii Kunth, Smilax havanensis Jacq., and Smilax 

 oblongata viscifolia (Derham.) Schulz. The long, yellow threads of the para- 

 sitic Cassytha filiformis Jacq. often cover and greatly injure the other growth. 

 It was only in this formation that we found Vanilla articulata Northrop on 

 New Providence. Its succulent stems were sometimes rooted and sometimes 

 not. In the latter case it lives entirely as an epiphyte. 



