XVII 
DISTRIBUTION OF THE ORGANIC BEINGS 
421 
large number of the species of this sub-group in this one small 
archipelago, and as a probable consequence of their numbers, 
the perfectly graduated series in the size of their beaks. Two 
species of the sub-group Cactornis, and two of Camarhynchus, 
were procured in the archipelago; and of the numerous 
specimens of these two sub-groups shot by four collectors at 
James Island, all were found to belong to one species of each ; 
whereas the numerous specimens shot either on Chatham or 
Charles Island (for the two sets were mingled together) all 
belonged to the two other species : hence we may feel almost 
sure that these islands possess their representative species of 
these two sub-groups. In land-shells this law of distribution 
does not appear to hold good. In my very small collection of 
insects, Mr. Waterhouse remarks, that of those which were 
ticketed with their locality, not one was common to any two 
of the islands. 
If we now turn to the Flora, we shall find the aboriginal 
plants of the different islands wonderfully different. I give all 
the following results on the high authority of my friend Dr. 
J. Hooker. I may premise that I indiscriminately collected 
everything in flower on the different islands, and fortunately 
kept my collections separate. Too much confidence, however, 
must not be placed in the proportional results, as the small 
collections brought home by some other naturalists, though in 
some respects confirming the results, plainly show that much 
remains to be done in the botany of this group: the 
Leguminosse, moreover, have as yet been only approximately 
worked out:— 
1 
Name 
of 
Island. 
Total 
No. of 
Species. 
No. of 
Species 
found in 
other parts 
of the 
world. 
No. of 
Species 
confined 
to the 
Galapagos 
Archipelago. 
No. 
confined 
to the 
one 
Island. 
No. of Species 
confined to the 
Galapagos 
Archipelago, 
but found on 
more than the 
one Island. 
James Island 
7 1 
O O 
3 3 
38 
30 
8 
Albemarle Island 
46 
18 
26 
22 
4 
Chatham Island . 
32 
16 
16 
12 
4 
Charles Island . 
68 
39 
(or 29, if the 
probably im¬ 
ported plants 
be subtracted). 
29 
21 
8 
