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Y1 FLOEA OF NEW ZEALAND.
Fungi, th a t will reward future explorers in what, as far as flowering plants are concerned, are
exliausted fields. Upwards of 114 Ferns (including Lycopodia) are already known* a number which
might he swelled by neai-ly one-half, were all the varieties which have been described as species
considered by me as such. 1 do not anticipate many more novelties in this Order; the species (with
few exceptions) having veiy wide ranges in the islands, and these beautiful plants having always
attracted a greater share of attention than others. The fohaeeoiis Cryptogamsf (Mosses and Hepaticæ)
are by far the most extensive Natural Order of plants (except Fungi) in these islands, as they
are of m ost temperate and especially moist climates. Of Hepaticæ Mr. Mitten enumerates in this work
180, whereas only about 150 are found in all Great B rita in ; and Mr. Wilson’s ‘Muscologia of New
Zealand ’ includes 350 species, amongst which are many of the most gigantic, beautiful, and interesting
in structure, in the world. I have no doubt th a t both these Orders will be more than doubled :
it requires a practised eye, and some prerious knowledge, thoroughly to explore a small district
rich in Mosses and Hepaticæ.
I n Fimgi this flora is stUl most imperfect, owing to the unattractive appearance of the species to
the general ohsener, and the difficulty of preserving them in a fit state for examination. Mr.
Berkeley has undertaken their arrangement, and his are the first observations of any consequence
th a t have ever appeared on the New Zealand species of this curious and most interesting Natural
Order, wMch is by far the lai-gest in the vegetable kingdom. So many of the kinds are minute, and
even microscopic, th a t it is probable that, when properly investigated, there will prove to be upwards
of 1000 species in New Zealand.
Much novelty is not to be looked for amongst the foliaceous and larger Lichens, hut great
additions may be made amongst crustaceous and minute epiphytical species. The New Zealand
Algæ, of which Dr. Harvey enumerates nearly 300 species, have from their beauty and singrdarity
long been objects of great interest to the botanist; and by the labours of Menzies, Tm’ner, Bory,
Hai-vey, and Montagne, this Natural Order has been better illustrated than any other. The great
amount of novelty contained in the coHections of Dr. Lyah, however, received since this work was
begun, show th a t even this department may be greatly increased.
Tlie total number of species brought together in this Flora is nearly 1900, to which upwards of
100 may be added, for the many minute C ryptogamia which I possess, hut which are in too imperfect
a state for satisfactory determination. This is much more than double the numerical extent of the
last enumeration published, th a t of M. Baoul, who in 1846 enumerates only 920 species, which may
be reduced to 770, if the natm-alized and erroneous species he eliminated. In 1838 Mr. Cunningham
gave 640 species, which should be reduced to 570; in 1833 M. Richard included 350 in his list;
Forster’s ‘ Prodromus’ has 154; and Banks and Solander’s collections .amount to 426. This rapid
increase of the Flora, which has thus been quintupled in twenty years, is mainly due to the attention
which has been devoted to the lower Orders: this may.easily be shown; for whereas in all the early
enumerations and collections the number of flowering plants exceeds the fiowcrless, in M. Raoul’s
Catalogue they are equal, and m the present work the relative proportions are reversed ; the Phæno-
gamic plants being to the Cryptogamic as 1 to 1 -6 ; i. e. about two to three.
* Banks and Solander described 66 species; Forster enumerates 40 ; M. A. Eichard 67, of which 8 should
be expunged A. Cunningham and M. Eaoul 112, from which fully 30 must be deducted, to bring the lists into
comparison with my own estimate of 114. '
few Mos^èr^ ‘■'headed to by the earlier explorers, except Menzies. Banks and, Solander collected very
In conclusion, if I may venture to assume a limit to the Flora of New Zealand, from the data
at my disposal, and from a comparison of these with those of b etter investigated countries with which
I am familiar, I should regai-d 4000 as the probable approximation; of which 1000 may be flowering
plants. Compared with any other countries in the same latitude, this is a very scanty Flora indeed
especially as regards flowering plants; of wMch Britain contains, in about the same area, upwards of
1400 species; and in Tasmania, not yet weU explored, and only containing one-third of the area,
upwards of 1000 have already been discovered. In Cryptogamic plants, on th e other hand, these
J.lnmls are extremely ric h ; not only proportionately to the Phienogamic, but absolutely so. Great
Britain, where these lower Orders have been assiduously studied for fifty years, contains about fifty
Perns, and Tasmania sixty-four.
In the above remarks I have not alluded to the Floras of some outljring islands, all of which
have more or less claim to be considered hotanicaUy as a p a rt of New Zealand. Of these, the extent
of its Flora renders Norfolk Island the most important; it contains many more tropical forms than
New Zealand, and is also more closely connected with the Pacific and Australian Floras. Chatham
Island* has been visited by Dr. Dieffenhach, who brought thence a very few plants, aU identical with
or closely allied to New Zealand species. Lord Auckland’s Group and CampheU’s Island were
investigated by myself in the Antarctic Expedition, and also by the French and American Antarctic
Expeditions, under Admiral D’UrviUe and Commodore Wilkes. All the known species have been
puhUshed in the first volume of the ‘Antarctic F lo ra ;’ they are almost aU identical with or closely
alUcd to New Zealand plants, and amongst them are found a few Antarctic American ones, not
hitherto discovered in New Zealand. They include 370 species, of which 100 are flowering plants,
and of these again 54 are known natives of New Zealand. As however neither these islands, nor
the mountains of the Middle Island of N ew Zealand, have been explored satisfactorily, it is probable
th a t a much larger proportion of their flora is common to both.
C H A P T E R II.
ON THE LIMITS OF SPECIES; THEIE DISPEESION AND VARIATION.
I t is no part of m y present object to discuss the theoretical views th a t have been entertained ou these
obscure subjects : my aim is to dr’aw attention to a few leading questions o f great practical importance,
which ought not to be overlooked, even if they do not force themselves on the notice of naturalists.
In explanation of my m eaning I shall assume certain positions t , and adopt them as principles
* A few Chatham Island plants were engraved in Paris many years ago for a magnificent work, ‘ Voyage de
la Venus;’ but the letterpress of that publication has never appeared, nor has the Botany of that voyage been
completed.
t I need hardly remark that these have no claim to originality; they are merely selected as heads of the subjects
upon which I intend to enlarge.