Manchester Memoirs, Vol. Ixii. (1918), No. 8. 13 



scoparia replaces the otherwise ubiquitous E. arborea. Lomaria 

 spicant, abundant here, was not seen elsewhere. Here also Dick- 

 sonia culcita, the only tree-fern of Teneriffe, occurs in heath thickets 

 in the Valle de las Palmas. Sambucus palmensis is found only upon 

 the northern slope, where also are the sole localities for Salvia 

 Bolleana and for several endemic species of Scrophularia. Luzula 

 canariensis and Carex Perraudieri were noted only in the moist 

 woods above Taganana. 



The hot, dry slopes of the southern side of the island, overlooking 

 the Bandas del Sur, are unfavourable to vegetation of this type. 

 Hence, when Gui'mar is left behind, the Monte Verde becomes prac 

 tically non-existent or is represented solely by wide stretches of 

 Cistus. Near Vilaflor it is only in the depths of the barrancos, 

 where a little water remains throughout the summer, that one meets 

 with a stray bush of Erica or Visnea, a little Salix canariensis or 

 Pteris arguta, with rarely a solitary laurel or arbutus, to recall the 

 bush flora which characterises this zone in more favoured parts of 

 the island. If laurel woods ever existed here, they have long since 

 been destroyed. Corresponding with, and perhaps partly the result 

 of, this failure of shade and moisture loving forms, there is here an 

 upward extension of the range of many plants which belong, strictly 

 speaking, to the coastal region below. This has already been re- 

 marked in the case of Opuntia and Euphorbia regis- Jubce. Further 

 examples are afforded by Retdma Spachii, Ferula Linkii, Gono- 

 spermumfruticosum, one or more of the arborescent species of Sonchus, 

 Echium strictum and Asparagus scoparius, which are noted upon the 

 rocky sides of the ravines, while in their depths are found forms more 

 appropriate to this elevation of 1200-1500 m. The result is an 

 intermixture which here renders the demarcation of the zones 

 almost impossible. 



The Pine Forest 



Pinus canariensis is a tree often of noble growth and of peculi- 

 arly light and graceful appearance, owing to the length (often 25 cm.) 

 of its slender " needles," which are of a more lively green than those 

 of our familiar P. sylvestris. The natural position of the pinar is im- 

 mediately above that of the Monte Verde, hence towards its lower 

 limit the pines are often scattered amongst thickets of Erica arborea, 

 Ilex, Cistus and Myricafaya. The largest pines in the island are two 

 specimens known as " los pinos grandes " upon the Lomo Gordo 

 above Vilaflor. Their trunks at 2 m. from the ground are 10 m. in 

 circumference, their height 35-40 m. (say 130 ft.). 



Owing to four centuries of wasteful destruction, the pinar, as a 

 well-marked belt, no longer exists. From much of the area which 

 it formerly occupied it has completely disappeared, or only a few 

 isolated individuals have escaped the woodman and charcoal-burner. 

 The resulting decrease in the rainfall of the island is only too evident. 

 There is no attempt at re-afforestation. Quantities of seedlings 

 spring up, only to be destroyed by the herds of goats which every- 

 where roam at large. Upon the northern side there are considerable 



