No. 31.— 1885.] 



CEYLON FLORA. 



151 



The same remark applies here that was made with regard 

 to the endemic genera. Nearly the whole are low-country 

 plants of the wet south-west (several being sea-shore 

 species). There are a few mountain types among them, in 

 Agrimonia, Poterium, Gynostemma, Crawfurdia, and Wiks- 

 trcemia, which are thus especially interesting as not occur- 

 ring in the Nilgiris. 



It is then clear that this non-Peninsular element of our 

 Flora is mainly concentrated in the south-west part of the 

 Island ; that is, between the high mountains and that part 

 of the coast of the Indian Ocean fairly bounded by the towns 

 of Colombo and Matara. Let us now endeavour to ascertain 

 whence it was derived. 



I may say at once that the affinity of the great majority 

 of the genera in the above lists is distinctly Malayan as 

 opposed to Indian. By this geographical expression, I 

 intend to indicate that type of vegetation characteristic of 

 the whole of the Eastern or Malay Peninsula down to 

 Singapore ; of the great Archipelago stretching from the 

 Audamans, Nicobars, and Sumatra eastward to, but not 

 including, New Guinea ; and also that extending north- 

 wards from Burmah through Tenasserim, Silhet, and the 

 plains of Assam up to the foot of the Eastern Himalaya, 

 which may be termed generally East Bengal. It is to this 

 very rich and luxuriant flora that these plants of south- 

 west Ceylon characteristically belong, though so com- 

 pletely discontinuous with it. 



This would be readily seen in detail if we were to examine 

 the distribution of the genera, both endemic and non- 

 endemic, in the three foregoing lists. Fully three-fourths 

 of them show this affinity unmistakably. In the non- 

 endemic ones we find in many cases identical species occur- 

 ring in Ceylon and in Malacca, or Burmah, or Borneo, or 

 over a wide range of the Malay Peninsula and islands. 

 In other cases the species are peculiar and confined to 

 Ceylon, whilst their congeners inhabit these Malayan regions. 

 Further examination of our flora would show us yet other 

 species with the same affinity, although the genera to 

 which they belong are not wholly absent from Peninsular 

 India, as is the case with all those above enumerated. 



A few striking examples are all that can be given here. 



