TKOPICAL riOKAS 57. 



Dr. Lauterbach, who is engaged in describing the new plant- 

 collections recently obtained, is evidently much impressed by 

 them. He states that down to 1905 there were known from 

 German Xew Guinea 2048 species of flowering plants, while 

 about 1000 additional species had been found in other parts 

 of the island. But the last Dutch expedition, from the por- 

 tions of the collections he has examined, will probably add 

 another 1000 species. Again he says that from collections 

 recently made by Schlechter in German Xew Guinea, and 

 through letters from him, an ^' immense increase in the number 

 of species is in prospect.'^ A few^ more years of such energetic 

 collecting will disclose more of the treasures of this the largest 

 of the great tropical islands, while its grand central chain of 

 mountains may be expected to produce a large amount of nov- 

 elty and beauty. Dr. Lauterbach's conclusion, in a letter to 

 Prof. Beccari, is as follows : " I believe, indeed, that one would 

 not estimate it too highly if one reckoned the sum total of the 

 Papuan Phanerogams at a round number of 10,000." Con- 

 sidering that ^ew Guinea has more than double the area of 

 the Philippines (which Mr. Merrill also estimates may con- 

 tain 10,000 species) ; that it is nine times the area of the 

 Malay Peninsula, which has already more than 5000 species 

 described; that it has the enormous length of 1500 miles, all 

 between 0° and 11° of S. latitude; that it has an extremely 

 varied outline ; that it possesses abundant diversity of hill and 

 valley, and a central range of mountains which have now been 

 proved to rise far above the line of perpetual snow ; and finally, 

 that it is almost everywhere clad with the most luxuriant for- 

 ests, and enjoys that moist and equable equatorial climate 

 which is proved to be most favourable to vegetable as well as 

 to insect life, it seems to me probable that it may ultimately 

 prove to be among the richest areas on the earth's surface. In 

 bird-life it seems likely to surpass any other equal area, and it 

 may do so in plants also, but In the luxuriance of insect-life 

 I am inclined to think that it will not equal the richest por- 

 tions of equatorial America. 



