112 
Fig. 6. The ivory-nut palm, Metroxylon amt c arum. 
Morinda citrifolia, Allophylus timorensis, Ficus 
tinctoria, T erminalia samoensis, Cordia subcor- 
data. 
Climbing vines or scrambling low shrubs: 
Clerodendron inerme, Piper sp., W edelia bi- 
flora , Colubrina asiatica, Cassytha filiformis. 
Prostrate vines: Canavalia maritima, Vigna 
marina. 
Herbs or shrubs of low stature (generally less 
than 1 ft high) : Euphorbia chamissonis , Trium- 
fetta procumbens, the grasses Lepturus repens, 
Thuarea involuta, and the sedge Fimbristylis 
cymosus. 
Erect herbs: Tacca leontopetaloides, Crinum 
as i at i cum, Nephrolepis. 
Epiphytes: Phymatodes scolopendria (also 
terrestrial on occasion), Davallia solida, Den- 
drobium sp., Asplenium nidus. 
These weedy grasses frequently are found in 
sand: Eragrostis amabilis, Cenchrus echinatus, 
Dactyloctenium aegyptium, and, less commonly, 
Eleusine indica. Euphorbia hirta and E. thy mi- 
folia, Passiflora foetida, and Stachytarpheta 
jamaicensis are all found around houses near 
the beach. 
Except for the absence of certain species (e.g., 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. XXI, January 1967 
Messerschmidia argentea, Soulamea amara, Suri- 
ana maritima, etc.) the plants enumerated here 
would be found on the reef islets of Truk and 
on most atolls in Micronesia as well. 
I 
Rocky Coastal Vegetation 
Trees: Ficus virens, Heritiera litt oralis, Bar- 
ringtonia asiatica, Thespesia populnea, Hibiscus 
tiliaceus. 
Shrubs: Allophylus timorensis, Desmodium 
umbellatum, Pemphis acidula. 
Herbs, low shrubs, or vines: Denis trifoliata i' 
(generally prostrate, but also a climbing vine), 
Nephrolepis, Procris pedunculata, W edelia bi- 
flora. 
Areas Under Cultivation, Past or Present 
This term is preferable to a specific one in- 
dicating a formation, since so little evidence of 
a recognizable indigenous formation is left. As 
such it is a loose heading under which may be 
assembled the various "villages” (really small 1 
groups of houses) with their immediate en- 
virons, as well as the entire inner or central 
portion of the island (including the hill area) 
in which only a few scattered houses occur, but 
throughout which there are nearly continuous 
signs of either present or former cultivation. 
This is often not intensive nor extensive, but 
may consist of one or a few fruit trees (limes, j 
soursops, Carica papaya, the edible pandans, 
mango) scattered under virtually continuous 
cover of coconuts, breadfruits, and occasional 
mangoes or large Ficus, and mixed with such | 
relatively persistent, aggressive, or fast-growing 
noncultivated species as Acalypha indica, Maca- 
ranga carolinensis, and Glochidion Pramiflorum; 
with ornamental species such as Cananga odorata 
or Cordyline fruticosa; or with occasional native 
species which may be remnants of an earlier 
type of vegetation or perhaps are randomly 
opportunistic individuals of other formations, 
usually at the margins of their area (e.g., 
Premna, Pandanus, Hernandia) . 
The ground-cover species (in the sense of 
being at ground level — these may be scatttered 
rather than continuous) include a number of 
weeds, such as Euphorbia heterophylla, Malva- 
strum, Triumfetta semitriloba, and the weedy 
grasses. Most evident is the very extensive cover 
