OF THE MALDIVE ISLANDS. 
163 
about 197 (245), while of the remainder about 66 (73) are 
probably due to introduction by sea, 17 (28) by birds, 4 (13) 
by wind. 
The flora is enumerated in detail, and the local and general 
distribution of its members mentioned, as well as the 
Maldivian names of the plants. It contains but few plants 
of special interest. Cladium jamaicense and Ardisia 
humilis in the southern atolls are worthy of note. 
The cultivated species in the Maldives number 100 or 
more, much exceeding those in the other archipelagos. The 
chief locally cultivated grain is kurakkan (Eleusine Cora- 
cana), rice being imported. The most important cultivation 
is that of cocoanuts. A classified description of the 
economic products of the islands is given. The most 
generally interesting is perhaps the mat industry, in which 
Pycreus polystachyus is employed. The weeds number 
about 79, mostly the common weeds of cultivation of India 
and Ceylon. 
Sea-borne species are especially numerous in the Maldives, 
including many not found in India or Ceylon, or in the 
Laccadives or Chagos. The main stream of the currents 
passes through the group, and the flora is thus derived 
partly from the Malay Archipelago, partly from the 
Seychelles, Africa, India, and Ceylon. A full discussion of 
the effects of currents and wind on the dispersal of these 
plants is given. 
Bird-carried species are mostly found in the Laccadives, 
nearest to the mainland, but there is slight evidence to 
indicate that any part of the combined archipelagos can be 
reached by bird transport. 
Wind is responsible for the introduction of many crypto- 
gams, but there is little reliable evidence for the carriage of 
other plants. 
Interesting details are given of the order of appearance 
of new plants on newly formed islands, and other points 
of this nature. 
( 22 ) 
