MR. W. II. BURRELL ON' MERTEN SI A MARITIMA, GRAY. 
201 
III. 
MERTENSIA MARITIMA, Gray, IN NORFOLK. 
By Mr. W. H. Burrell. 
Read 28 th November, 1905. 
In June, 1905, Robert Pinchen directed my attention to 
Mertensia maritima. Gray (Pneumaria maritima. Hill) growing 
on the shingle beach of the north Norfolk coast. 
There were four plants grouped within a few feet of each 
other, one small, bearing no flowers, one slightly larger in 
bloom, and two still larger, having prostrate shoots nine inches 
long with flowers, and about twenty capsules in different stages 
of development. One of the plants had been nibbled by 
rabbits, and was looking sickly ; the others were healthy and 
vigorous. I regret not being able to visit the locality in the 
autumn to see whether the seeds had ripened. 
On the mainland of Europe, Mertensia maritima is a northern 
plant distributed from Lapland southwards to Denmark; it 
occurs also in Iceland, Faroes, Britain from Shetland south- 
wards to Northumberland on the east coast, to Carnarvon 
on the west coast, and in Ireland, Wicklow Head. It is worthy 
of notice that the north Norfolk coast is approximately in the 
same parallel of latitude as the Irish station. 
Whether the plant is a native of Norfolk will perhaps best be 
decided by time ; if the latitude is south of the limit it will 
not maintain its existence here; but the conditions do not 
appear to be inconsistent with its being a native which has 
hitherto escaped observation. 
Mr. Arthur Bennett has been good enough to examine 
a dried specimen and vouch for its identity. 
