OF THE MALDIVE ISLANDS. 
141 
feet, greater distances may be traversed.* Let us take the 
fleshy-fruited plants first. Of these we have the following : — 
Ardisia humilis 
Of these 25, it is all but certain, as we have seen above, that 
Zizyphus, Allophylus, Physalis have been intentionally 
introduced for cultivation. The occurrence of Vitis Linnæi 
is very doubtful. Colubrina, Sonneratia, Morinda, Cassytha, 
Premna, and Ardisia are littorals which may be introduced 
by sea currents, though when once introduced they may be 
further spread by birds. Datura fastuosa and Solanum 
torvum are common cultivation weeds. The Asparagus is 
almost certainly intentionally introduced, as it only occurs 
in Male, and has the same name as in India and Ceylon, and 
there are doubts about Vitex and the Fici. We can thus 
only accept as almost certainly introduced by means of 
seed-dropping by birds the following species : — Flacourtia, 
Pleurostylia, Vitis two spp., Cephalandra, Pavetta, Lantana, 
seven in all, belonging to six genera and six families. Of 
these, five occur only in the Eastern and Central Laccadives 
near to the mainland of India, one occurs only in the 
Western Laccadives, one only in the Northern Maldives. 
We may therefore reasonably conclude (i.) that there is a 
fair amount of evidence that plants may be carried by birds 
in their intestinal canals from India to the nearer Laccadives, 
a distance of 100-150 miles, and possibly from Ceylon to 
the Maldives, a distance of 350-400 miles ; if this occurred, 
it must have been in the north-east monsoon, when the 
(Flacourtia Sepiaria) 
(Pleurostylia Wightii) 
Zizyphus Jujuba 
Colubrina asiatica 
Vitis Linnæi 
( quadrangularis) 
( carnosa) 
Allophylus Cobbe) 
Sonneratia acida 
(Cephalandra indica) 
(Pavetta indica) 
Morinda citrifolia 
(Solanum torvum) 
Physalis minima 
Datura fastuosa 
Lantana mixta 
Premna integrifoha 
Vitex Negundo 
Cassytha filiformis 
Ficus benghalensis 
Asparagus racemosus 
infectoria 
Retusa 
sp. 
