THE BOTANY OF CHRISTMAS ISLAND. 267 



Cryptocarya nativitatis, Favourite food of Carpophaga. 



Claoxylon caerulescens. 



Macaranga tanarius ? 



Celtis cinnamonea. 



Trema amboinensis, Drupes orange, commonly dispersed by 

 birds in Singapore. 



Ficus retusa, Eaten by bats and birds. 



F. saxophila, Figs bright red or orange. 



Laporteas ? 



Boehmeria platyphylla ? 



Arenga Listeria Berry pink. 



Spondids dulcis may have been sea-drifted to the Island 

 as fruits of one species have been found in sea-drift in 

 Jamaica, but it is stated that it is commonly carried 

 about by Hornbills in Java, and as these are far- 

 flighted birds one or more may have reached Christ- 

 mas Island at some period. The fruit appears to be 

 too big for Carpophaga, as it remained untouched at 

 the foot of the trees, and the trees were confined to 

 a limited area. * 



It is perhaps worth noting that all these plants in this 

 list are either Javanese or from one of the neighbouring 

 islands or allied to plants from this region, with the exception 

 of Cryptocarya nativitatis of Australian affinities. 



Adhesive seeds or fruits. 



These are furnished with hooks, bristles, or hair, or a 

 gummy secretion by which they adhere to the fur or 

 feathers of birds and animals and are so borne from 

 place to place. This class of seeds is rare in Oceanic 

 Islands, the greater number of the plants possessing such 

 means of dissemination being low growing plants, with which 

 birds seldom come in contact. Such are Centotheca and 

 Laphotherum grasses dispersed by mammals walking through 

 the forests. These plants through common and widely 

 dispersed through the Malay region are absent from the 



R. A. Soc, No. 45, 1905. 



