o44 REPORT OF THE HARVARD AFRICAN EXPEDITION 
Cola nitida is apparently a remnant of the original forest that has been 
spared because of the value attached to the fruit by the natives. Certainly 
the trees are not numerous, and from the fact that two related species, C. acu- 
minata and C. lateritia grow in the original forest, and since also the tree at 
Paiata grows luxuriantly in the shade of the taller trees, it seems evident that 
C. nitida cannot be considered a typical species of secondary growth. The 
same remarks also apply to many of the vines that are seen in this formation. 
Thus, while Combretum platypterum and especially C. grandiflorum appear to 
thrive in the open, Hippocratea Loeseneriana and H. Welwitschii appear to be 
more typically forest types. At all events, when found elsewhere, H. Loese- 
neriana, occurs in heavy forests. Two additional species of Mucuna, M. flagel- 
lipes and M. urens are present in the second growth. The latter species, 
characterized by its large yellow sweet pea-shaped flowers, is used by the na- 
tives in the manufacture of pottery to make the utensils black. The slender 
cucurbitaceous vines of Physedra longipes and Melothria capillacea appear to 
grow equally well in secondary growth and in openings in the original forest. 
The little vetch, Abrus canescens, is an inhabitant of the roadsides. A liane 
that grows over the higher trees of the second growth, later found at Pehata 
in the original forest, has recently been described as Calpocalyx sericeus by 
Hutchinson and Dalziel. It is characterized by its one to one and a quarter 
inch thick, hexagonal stem; its grayish leaves; and its dull orange flowers 
that are arranged on spikes that are frequently clustered and subtended by 
grayish, silky, bi-pinnate leaves. The flowers give off a very delightful ap- 
ricot fragrance that can be detected from a distance. 
The more common grasses of the secondary growth of the drier soils are 
Eleusine indica, Acroceras oryzoides, Paspalum conjugatum, and P. scrobiculatum. 
The last species also occurs in the more moist situations. All are found among 
the more recent growth and either in the open or in thickets. Of other her- 
baceous types, Piper umbellatum with its large round leaves and its grayish- 
white dense spikes of flowers, makes an occasional showing; less conspicuous 
are the plants of Vigna unguiculata and Honckenya minor. The last species, 
growing in rather dry exposed places, in contrast to H. ficifolia that often is 
almost six feet tall, attains a height of only fourteen inches. In spite of the 
difference in stature, their flowers make their generic relations clear. 
Adjacent to the town of Gbanga, also known as Joquelli Gbanga, there 
have been conserved about five hundred acres of the original forest that ap- 
parently serve as a game preserve. Within the forest is found both the original 
swamp flora and also that of the upper levels. The swampy area is traversed 
by an intricately winding brook that leaves islands of mud or sand and makes 
minute bayous. In such shaded places the common herbaceous plants belong to 
the family Marantaceae; members of the Commelinaceae, such as Palisota spp. 
are also fairly well represented, while such species as Renealmia maculatum, 
Leptaspis conchifera, a grass, and two or three species of Chlorophytum, and 
1 Hutchinson, J., and Dalziel, J. M.: Tropical African Plants VI. Kew Bull. Misc. Inform. 1928 
(10): 400. 1928. 
