278 Hems ley . — The Flora of 
a small number of monocotyledons, especially of the petaloid 
group, and a considerable endemic element. Among the 
insular floras that I have worked out, this is most nearly 
comparable to that of Juan Fernandez; both islands being 
situated in nearly the same latitude, several hundred miles 
distant from the nearest land, and rising approximately some 
3,000 feet above the sea-level. But the two floras present 
some singular divergencies in details. Juan Fernandez is 
more than twice the size of Howe ; yet its vascular plants 
number only 162 species, as against 209, and of these no 
fewer than forty-four are ferns. On the other hand, the 
endemic element in Juan Fernandez is about fifty per cent., 
or double that of Howe, and arboreous Compositae char- 
acteristic of the former, of St. Helena and the Galapagos, are 
wanting in the latter. They have, however, many features 
in common, and there are even remote affinities between the 
two floras. Thus the essentially southern genera Drimys, 
Coprosma, and Uncinia are represented by different species 
in the two islands. The only leguminous plant in Juan 
Fernandez, Sophora tetraptera, is also found in Howe. Lobelia 
anceps is another plant common to the two islands, but little 
stress can be laid on this fact, as it probably owes its 
present wide range to human agency. The Tree-ferns of 
Juan Fernandez belong to the genera Dick sonia and Also- 
phila, both represented in Howe, and the solitary endemic 
palm, y ' Mania australis , belongs to the Areceae, and is placed 
very near the genus Howea. The presence of endemic genera 
of arboreous Compositae in Juan Fernandez, each represented 
by several species, is the principal distinguishing feature. 
Yet arboreous Compositae are not wanting in the New 
Zealand region, Eurybia Traversii and Senecio Huntii being 
conspicuous trees in the woods of the Chatham Islands, to 
say nothing of those inhabiting New Zealand itself. 
I will now examine a little more in detail the table show- 
ing the distribution of the genera of the vascular plants of 
Howe Island. As we have seen, out of a total of 160, there 
are only four endemic. This is a very low percentage, 
