New Zea and Na r N u e o es .

SH O RT S K ETC H ES

O F T H E

E L Y ‘ BOTANY Z OOL Y G O OG , , OG , AND ETHNOLOGY OF NEW Z EALAND

( W I T H N OT E S O N E N G IN E E RIN G - WO RK S )

F O R T H E U S E O F

‘ Me mbe r s o f the Au s tr a la s ia n Ass o ciatio n fo r the

n f Adva n ce me t o Scie n ce ,

llin to n Me e tin n a r 1 23 W e Ja u . g g, y, 9

L L N N WE I G TO .

B Y A U T R TY : W A G K N N E R VE RN M E N T P R N T E R . HO I . . . S I , GO I C O N T E N TS .

G o o o o o f The e m rph l gy Wellingto n . The Wild Indigeno us Plants o f the City o f Wellingto n L itto ral Plant and Animal Co mm unities o f Co o k Strait N o o n o f o tes the Marine Fauna Island Bay , Wellingt n m o o o o m l o . Ethn l gical Exhibits in the D ini n Museu , We lingt n The Mao ri o f N e w Z ealand Physio graphic N o tes o n Auckland R a n gito to Island and its Vegetatio n The Fo rest o f the W a ita ke r e i R ange The K auri Fo rest Auckland Museum R o to rua and Taupo Districts The Pl a nt life o f the H o t L akes District The To ngariro N atio nal Park The Plant life o f the To nga riro N atio na l Park and its Environs The G eo lo gy o f the Mineral Belt o f N elso n The Vegetatio n o f a Po rtio n o f the Mineral Belt T h e C o N o awthr n Institute , els n G eo lo gical N o tes o n Banks Peninsula The Flo ra o f Banks Peninsula Canterbury Museum The S o uthern Alps G laciers a n d G lacia ti o n in the M o un t Co o k District The Plant life in the Vicinity o f M o unt Co o k o G Franz J sef lacier, Westland The Vegetatio n near the Franz J o sef G lacier The G eo lo gy o f th e Dunedin District The Flo ra o f Dunedin Otago U niversity Museum The Mica - schists o f Central Otago L ists o f L o calities G eo lo gy M o untain Passes Bo tany Agriculture and Fo restr y w Engineering o rks . Electric - po wer Statio ns NEW Z EALAND NATURE NOTES.

P L G L L G TH E G EOMOR H O O Y OF WE IN TON .

G O F P D I TH E ORI IN THE ORT NICHOLSON EPRESS ON .

— ’ TH E Port Nicholson depression c ontaining o n e o f the world s finest natural harbours , the location Of which has determined the position — o f l o f Wel ington , the capital New Zealand may be described as m s o n o w an area Of subsidence partially sub erged , that it comprises

S I N CL A I R L A H EA D L R

5 M I L E S

F I G — . I O f o N . Map P rt icholso n . a broad sheet Of water (Port Nicholson) and several embayed ridges between this and the sea to the south (fig . — The depression is almost surrounded to west , north , and east

- - by a higher standing land surface . The dominant features Of the hi - gh standing area , and also Of the unsubmerged portions Of the

a. area Of subsidence , are mature ridges and spurs , but remnants Of o n dissected peneplain may be traced some Of the ridges , and most

Of the valleys are rej uvenated . In the western part the average 4

f t t . o relief is fully , and several ridges rise more than ft . above the sea ; while to the east the ridges are successively higher o f R im u t a ka R until , at a distance seven miles , the _ ange ft . )

. , e is reached The smaller valleys are insequent but ther , is a a m distinct longitudin l , and occasionally trellised , drainage syste

n z - with occasio al crushed ones , or shatter belts ,

- A S . block Show a similar parallel arrangement . a result of d e pr e s s r o n P of the maturely dissected surface these ridges (Miramar eninsula . and the K ilbirnie H ills) and their spurs are separated by drowned n o w 00 to 600 f valleys , and their highest peaks reach only 4 ft . t .

- o f r o above sea level , while an almost complete absence islands f m

F I — - N G 2 o Of o o o . . . Eastern sh re line P rt ich ls n the northern portion of the harbour suggests that subsidence was there much greater than farther south . The north - western boundary of the depression is a well - preserved

- fault scarp (see p . but the remaining boundaries are embayed

- c by submergence . The embayed eastern shore line is tra ed along the half - submerged side o f a prominent and steep - sided longitudinal ridge (fig . It has been cliffed by marine erosion , and still later prograded , with the formation of a cuspate foreland . Al ong all the shore - lines initiated by the subsidence there are

- wave cut cliffs o f varying height according to the exposure . On the exposed outer (southward - facing) coast cliff - recession has taken t o o f place a very considerable extent , truncating the ends the

- o f half submerged ridges , and large areas cut platforms lie at the f - A - d c li f bases . long this outer coast the shore line of the epressed a rea is , or , rather , was before a small uplift which accompanied the 1 8 o f earthquake of 55, in an early mature stage development , c onsiderable modification of the initial embayed outline having res u lted in part from . the cutting - back of points and in part fr om

- fil l n A P i . bay g sand isthmus , which ties Miramar eninsula , a former f island , to the mainland , e fects a decided smoothing of the initial o utline (fig . P ort Nicholson has a smooth floor , with a maximum depth of

1 00 . ft . in the middle This indicates that a large accumulation of

— - d o m o m . F I G . Diagra sh wing Mira ar Peninsula as a land tie island Ab ve o m o c l iffi n m o d ifi c a tio n o f o is the initial f r ; bel w , g and the uter

co ast o f th e d epressed area are sho wn .

— F I - G . m 4 . Diagra sketch o f the so uthern end o f the tilted area east o f Po rt

N m o - - o icho lso n . Fro left (n rth west) to right (so uth east) the c astal S o P e n c a r r o w H L K o a n a ir i ir i L features h wn are ead , ake g p p , ake

K o a n a t e r a o H d - o - R g , Fitzr y Bay , Baring ea , Wainui mata iver, Or o n o r o n o R C Tu r a kir a e g g iver , ape . s th e edime nt has taken place , the material burying submerged mature — land surface .

— - it s . n o r h Though t western boundary is a fault scarp (fig . the d - epression is not simply a small fault bounded tectonic block . The a o i — bsence companion fault scarps , no less than the positive

physiographic evidence , indicates that faulting must be regarded a s merely an incident in the formation o f the depression . The p rincipal event appears to have been the sharp d o w n w a r pin g o f a 6

o f - - belt land about thirty miles long , elongated in a north north east and south - south - west direction (and exte nding an unknown distance

- - e farther to the south south west beneath the s a ) . The depth o f d o w n w a r in n p g that must be assumed is variable , the maximum bei g f r t . o perhaps in the neighbourhood of , perhaps rather more , o f P where the broadest part ort Nicholson now is . The width o f f f the strip a fected also varies in di ferent parts , but is at least P ten miles where ort Nicholson is widest . Both depth and width

- H diminish , though irregularly , to the north east up the utt Valley . o f d o w n w a r in The movement p g took place comparatively recently . Though the outer coast of the partly drowned area is now approach

s u b m a tu r it - ing y of outline , the initial shore line (after submergence) c a n still be restored , and it is seen that the change in the normal subaerial land - forms that has taken place since submergence is inappreciable . The surface that was warped and incidentally faulted to produce the depression was therefore like th a t o fh th e surrounding — - me district to day maturely dissected , with a so what fine texture o f S u h r n l of dissection and a relief rather more than ft . c s t o g y differential movement Of a small earth - block in very recent t imes is unusual even in New Zealand , thou gh it was common enough in somewhat earlier times when the mountain masses were bl ocked o u t and the river - courses determined by the movements t o which th e name K aikoura has been applied . The evidence in support of the hypothesis of warping to account for the submergence of the Port Nicholson area is much more con P c l u s ive for the eastern than for the western side of ort Nicholson . In the critical area o n the western side ancient strand - l ines do n o t

o u t . survive , but have been completely away by modern marine erosion The on ly positive evidence of warping found there is a progressively more extensive drowning of val leys as the entrance to the harbou r is approached ; but there is also weighty negative evidence in th e absence of a traceable fault - scarp separating the obviously depressed

- Port Nicholson area from the high standing land to the west . * o f The evidence on the eastern side is more striking . I t is three kinds : ( 1 ) Uplifted wave - cut platforms (ancient strand - lines) o n the outer coast are very strongly tilted endwise towards Port 2 n Nicholson (fig . 4 ) ( ) there is progressively more extensive drow ing

- o f valleys as the harbour entrance is approached (fig . (3) the

- inferred tilting towards the centre line Of the . depression is s o strong

that it must have considerable effect on the regimen of streams . The larger streams east of the harbour are for the most part parallel

- to the hinge line of warping , and , as might thus be expected , are but little aff ected but the valleys of small headwater streams tributary to these and entering them from the west Show striking aggradational f o f th e e fects , which can be ascribed only to headward tilting in spite s steep gradients normal to such streams , even when mature , in thi

- f district of strong and fi n e textured relief . These e fects may be seen

o f - o - - in well developed in the western branch the Wainui mata , and 6 the western tributaries o f the Mangaroa (fig . ) . T

This evidence is set o u t m o re fully in a paper by the present writer

- N i h o l entitled Th e Warped L and surface o n the Eastern S ide o f the Port c — 1 2 1 l . 1 1 . Z n vo . N . . I s t s o n o Tr a n s . Depressi n , , 53 , pp 3 4 3 , 9 — L 1 0 2 G e o m o r h o l o o N e w Z e a l a n d . 2 8 . o o . cit . T , pp 4 4 p gy f , p 3 F I - - G . 1 - 5. Fau t scarp forming the no rth western bo undary o f the Port N o o ich ls n depression .

’ F - I G . 6 . o f H R Map the utt iver delta , which partly fills the Po rt N icho lson o depressi n , and the aggraded valley o f the western branch o f — - m o . N o the Wainui ata te the co ntrast between the fault - scarp o m o - f r ing the straight n rth western side o f the d epressio n a n d the m S . o m e bayed eastern ide Appr xi ate scale . m , s in I ile . 8

TH E G T U - I n WELLIN ON FA LT SCARP (figs . a d

The fault - scarp referred to abov e as forming the north - wester n boundary of Port Nicholson trends approximately south - west t o n - - orth east . Its south western part forms the steep slope of th e

Tin a ko r i H - ills , and its north eastern continuation extends far up the H valley of the utt River . The scarp appears to have been s u b m a t u r e l y dissected and very recently rej uvenated . It seems to have come into existence as an accompaniment o f the formatio n of the Port

Nicholson depression . When rej uvenation took place , however , o n though probably the floor of the depression again sank , the land

- the north western side of the fault appears to have risen . The newer scarp thus cuts a s u b m a t u r e l y dissected surface with a rather

P - e steep general slope towards ort Nicholson , blunt ended spurs alt r r nating with streams , a few only of which are now mature at thei

—R m Se a — F I G . o o 7 . aised r ck platf r and beach , backed by cliffs ,

o o o . s uthward fr m Breaker Bay , Wellingt n

A n mouths . bove the newer scarp would rise the somewhat wor A l l e o f , . facets the earlier dissected scarp the . streams would cascad

. into Port Nicholson from the mouths of hanging valleys . These characteristics are still recognizable , though they have been somewhat — modified in the post faulting period .

‘ A c - A c e s s Visible from Wellington . good point of view is the o n Tin a ko r i H K radio station ills . Take arori tram to Northland ; thence walk .

. T G RAI SED BEACHES A WELLI N TON . The Wellington earthquake of 1 855 was accompanied by a

. sudden uplift , or , more strictly , tilting of a large block of country A ccording to the account received by L yell from eye - witnesses l P r in ci l e s o G e o l o and embodied in the ater editions of the p f gy, 9 t h e hinge - lin e of the tilt coincided roughly with the north - western

P u l if t ' in r e d c c a s e . oast of the Wellington eninsula , and the p to 5 ft

a t . o f Wellington , and thence to 9 ft at a point on the shore

P - - alliser Bay , about fifteen miles in a direct line east south east from

Wellington . A s a result o f the movement extensive areas o f the rock platforms cut by wave - action al ong the southern coast in the n e ighbourhood o f Wellington during a relatively long period o f stillstand were raised

- permanently above high water level (fig .

The rock platform is surmounted by stacks , and numerous

- f irregular hollows in it are filled with gravel . Wave cut cli fs rise

- behind the platforms , with occasional sea caves at the base , and there

- — n i s generally a convex beach ridge of gravel at the former shore li e .

Both beach and platform now support a scanty growth of vegetation ,

- the seaward limit of which is a new beach ridge . The most extensive r ock platforms stretch out seaward from the base of the cliffs at the southern end of Miramar Peninsula (fig . The raised beaches o f - have been largely destroyed in the course road construction , their Of presence allowing of the cheap formation roads along the foreshore , but a strip about a mile in length along the eastern shore o f the southern end o f Miramar Peninsula still remains in a good state o f

preservation . A cce s s — b . The est of the raised beaches and associated features may be seen in the course of a walk from L yall Bay (tram - terminus) e P K astward around the south end of Miramar eninsula . eep to the

e - t h e foreshore as far as Breaker Bay quarry , thence tak road through

- . m u a cutting to S eatoun (tram te r inus) . On the sides of this c ttin g % ” a lmost horizontal earth pillars may be seen pointing so u thward G r h l o N e w Z e a l a n d e o m o o o . (Cotton , p gy f , fig

H G - G V - CU T P F I H STANDIN WA E LAT ORMS .

West and east of the d o w n w a r pe d Port Nicholson area the coasts a r e of the multicycle uplifted type , and the uplift (which has left its o n impression I the land also , in the form of multicycle subaerial

’ features) wa s no doubt general prior to the occurrence of the local

- a subsidence . Wave cut rock platforms with a thin veneer of gr vel

and coarse sand occur at various levels . They are reduced to narrow

benches by cliff - cutting marine erosion in the intermediate and present c ycles , and in many places have been cut away altogether .

‘ West of Port Nicholson the high platforms that survive are only o f i o n e two in number , and the higher these s represented by but — small remnant . The lower is traceable for several miles from Cape Te r a w h i i I — t to beyond Tongue Point (fig . ) but for a great part of - f f this distance only in the section exposed along the sea cli s , in which the even top of a c u t bench c a n be very distinctly seen from s e a w ard . This is covered , however , by a thick accumulation of talus , A t the slope of which quite obscures the profile of th e bench . Tongue P l o f . oint , however , quite a arge remnant the bench survives o f P East ort Nicholson there is an extensive series of benches , e ach the remnant o f a cut platform (figs . 5 and These are tilted I O

1 endwise very steeply (about 75 ft . per mile) towards the depressed * area . On the lower benches there is a considerable quantity of H gravel , and at Baring ead some stacks survive on the platform H which forms the ead . — A cce s s The platforms at Tongue Point may be reached by walk ing westward along the foreshore from Island Bay tram - terminus ; — — o r - , more easily , by road and bridle track motor car to end o f S outh o f K S Makara Road (in the valley the arori tream) , thence on foot ’ M c M e n a m e n s three miles to homestead at Tongue Point . To visit the platforms east of Port Nicholson it is necessary to proceed by motor - c a r by way of Petone or L ower H utt and the

- o - — s e e Wainui mata Valley (note aggradation due to tilting p .

F I G 8 — U m . o H a n d C . plifted marine platf r s between Baring ead ape Tura kir a e o , Wellingt n .

to the last farm - buildings before the mouth o f th e Wainui is reached

- H - o - is (twenty four miles from Wellington) . ere the Wainui mata crossed on a plank bridge , and a steep slope undercut by a meander f o o ff . the stream , since cut , must be climbed There is an indistinct z P n track , which leads over a low gap , to Fit roy Bay . roceed alo g H H the lowest , or Baring ead , platform to Baring ead , where the tilt o f this platform becomes obvious and an excellent V iew o f the higher benches is obtained .

A T . C . . COT ON

F r f L - o o o C . . C a descripti n these see A otton , The Warped and surface — Tr N Z I 1 1 6 1 2 1 . a n s . . n s t 1 . . , vol . 53 , pp . 3 43 (refer to pp 3 9 I I

TH E WIL D IND IG ENOU S PL A NTS OF TH E CITY OF L L G WE IN TON . H ere is included all the area within the city boundaries together D ’ with the forest reserve at ay s Bay . Much , though nominally o f city , is open country containing many remnants the almost c ontinuous original forest covering , and there is also an extensive

- c oast line whic h provides many types of coastal habitats . In con

sequence , about 3 7 per cent . of the total New Zealand lowland and c flo r a s oastal , taken together , are gathered together into a small

c ompass . 1 6 The pteridophytes and spermophytes number about 4 species , o 8 2 1 0 w hich belong t no less than 3 families and genera . The

’ largest families and genera , together with _ the species in each , are 6 G 2 2 Filices , 7 ; Cyperaceae , 3 5 ; ramineae , 5 ; Compositae , 3 ; 2 1 1 8 e 1 1 8 Rubiaceae , ; Orchidaceae , ; Onagracea , 5 ; Coprosma , ; I 2 x 1 1 H 1 0 Epilobium , Care , ymenophyllum and Blechnum , each .

S o - far as forest plants are concerned , a considerable percentage a n G c be seen within the city proper , for much of the Botanical ardens

is occupied by a fairly - well - preserved example of the semi - coastal

rain - forest which originally filled the gullies and clothed many o f

the slopes where houses now stand closely . Unfortunately , the tall

trees were destroyed long ago , bu t there is still a dense , rich vegetation

o f 1 1 0 i o f - e about k nds small trees , tree ferns , shrubs , lianes , and f rns S i o f n in general . ome characterist c plants the New Zeala d flora are represented by fine examples in this invaluable open - air museum e c a u l iflo r o u s D s o x l n m s e c ta b il e . g . , the tree y y p , the dimorphic ' n a a e u d a n a x a i zn n i i P e n n a ti c o r fn b o s P s o cr s s o l m . n o l o l a tu m y , p f var j ‘ (with its j uvenile and adult forms so different h a t at o n e time R n b n s a n s tm l is they were held to be distinct species) , (a huge

M r tns b u l l a ta, bramble) , and y with its curiou s blistered leaves . At L yall Bay typical dunes may be seen with the endemic S cir p u s fr o n d o s u s — a h admirable example of convergent epharmony a s a - A c a e n a n o va e - ze l a n d ia e sand binder , and the locally endemic a l l id a f a P h r n var . p . On shaded coastal cli fs there is bundance of o n n m o l e n s o i Se n e ci o Za o us F e s tu c a m n l tin o d is C , and in its company g p and . ’ ’ A ciphyl l a s qu a m/ o s a and a variety of R a o n l za a n s tm l zs also occur h — on the coast , thoug they are frequently mountain plants . The subantarctic Cm s s n l a m o s ch a w has on this piece of coast its sole f o r S station the North Island . everal rather rare species are coastal L e id iu m o b tn s a tmn H m e n a n th e m o b o va ta o r o s m a K ir kii p , y , C p , n d C B u ch a n a i a . n . The D ay ’ s Bay reserve is a noble piece of almost virgin forest 600 some acres in extent . The dominant tall trees belong to the s N o th o a u s N n s . e a N . ubantarctic genus f g , the species , being f and ’ S o l a n d m o n e , together with various forms of hybrids between them , o f N a i n c l a m. group such being known as . p Within the gullies the

o f - N o th o a u s vegetation is the rain forest type , while the f g association

i - s t o . confined the drier slopes Compared with the rain forest, its

undergrowth is more open and xerophytic , as evidenced by the

o f a th o d e s a ce r o s a - p resence Cy and other drought resisting species . But Tr ich o m a n e s Ve n i o r m e the filmy fern , f , with its broad fronds curled u b p in dry weather is common on the dry slopes . Near streams r yo h t e s f M o n o cl e d p y are plenti ul , including the huge thalloid liverwort ' F o r te m A s . t its outskirts the forest merges into tall shrubland , with l L e to s e wn n m s c o a yin m the u sua p p p dominant , combined , however ,

s o . with young trees , that it is really potential forest L . COCKAYNE . 1 2

L ITTORA L PL A NT A N D A NIMA L COMMUNITI ES OF COO K S A TR IT . A weathered platform of greywacke rocks fronting the open ocean , a nd - b f with no large river discharging near y, af ords in the intertidal S belt solid foothold in clear water . uch ideal conditions for marine S life are found in Cook trait , easily accessible by tram from th e

o f G - City Wellington . ood collecting ground may be found near the L S , , . Island Bay yall Bay and eatoun termini Being an open coast , there is no heaping up of tides , so that the moderate range of about

%

5 ft . at ordinary springs is the rule . This allows for the development of only two or three distinct belts of plant and animal life in vertical S sequence at any point . ituated as Wellington is near the middle o f D o f the ominion , samples the typical marine algal communitie s of both the northern and southern portions of New Zealan may be , d

e - seen , though some specially characteristic cold and warm water

’ - B tr associations are absent , such as the small moss weed ( o s yc h za ) association of Otago and the mangrove and tunicate communities o f

A uckland . — D u r vil l e a A s s o ci a tio n On the most exposed portions o f the rocky coast outside the harbour the large kelp - weed (D u r vil l e a a n ta r ctie a )

, forms a miniature marine forest . On the shore the maximum amount. o f light and supply o f water occur in that strip between the level o f H l o w . tide at neaps and Springs ere , where the waves beat hardest and the waters are consequently most aerated , the kelp loves to grow .

Its large discoidal holdfasts are fixed to the rock high up in this belt , and its large palmate leathery fronds hang down , covering the rock d face while the tide is out , and , when covered with water , stan is upright by virtue of their natural buoyancy . This buoyancy brought about not , as in many kinds of brown algae , by special air vesicles , but by the large polygonal cells which make up the bulk f D u r vil l e a of the tissue of the thallus . The upper margin o the

L a u r e n cia - e association is usually defined by a fringe of , a dark purpl 2 species forming tufts in . to 3 in . high . Following on this is a narrow Xi h o h o r a c h o n d r o h l l a a belt of the common brown alga p p p y , e sily recogni zed by its branching flat thalli . Below these algae the bulk ’ L e s s o n za of the formation lies , and consists principally of a mixture of ' va r i e a ta Ca r o h l l n m m a s c h a l o c a r m n M a r i n a r za b o r a n a S a r a s g , p p y p , g y , g s n n z S in cl a ir i s to h o r a d u m o s a , and Cy p extending some distance below

- c o m low tide mark . Beneath these large species is an undergrowth P te r o cl a d i a prised of smaller red , green , and brown algae , such as ’ ’ B o w n ii L c h a e te D a rtm n i Z o n a r za Tu r I n c d a a u l e r a s e d o id e s . r i , C p , C , y , ' ’ n mm n e r za n a G l o s s o h o r a H a r ve z S t o ca n l o n a n ic l a , , p y , yp p , and others

- while the rock - face itself is covered with the crustaceous c o r r a l l in e s

' L i th o tka m n i o n A m h ir o a M e l o b e s za and , and the branching corallines p ,

’

Co r a ll zn a a n i a . , and j The animals associated with the large brown ’

Ca n th a r zd n s o a l u s . algae include the herbivorous gastropods p , C u r a m Tu r b o s m a r a d u s ; p pu r , and g , feeding on the larger algae the ’ E n d o xo c h ito n n o bili s P l a m h o r a large sedentary chitons , such as , p b ir a rn o s a S h a r o ch ito n S in cl a i r i M til u s ca n a li , and yp ; the mussels y ‘ m a o r i a n n s H a l i o tzs ir i s e n l n s and M . ; and the large ear shells and H u t a l S r - fis h a s r i s . hore fishes include various blennies and the sucke ' ‘ ‘ D i l o cr e i s u n i ce u s th e f o r m e r p p p , usually taking protection in rock 1 3

pools and gulfs , the latter freely exposing itself to the surf and n relying on its pectoral disc to hold on to the rocks . The more c o ' ’ s pic u o u s echinoderms are the sea - urchin E ve cln n n s c kl o r o l zcn s and the

’ s t a r fi s h e s A s te r in a r e u l a r i s A s te r i a s s ca b r a P e n ta o n a s te r u l g , , and g p ' c ke l l u m . Of especial interest is the fauna which is found within the

- D u v l l e a H S i h o n a r ze l r i . ia a a n d ica hollowed out bases of ere are found p , P l a xi h o r a e r e i a various crustacea and worms , an d the chitons p g g and ’ O tlzo c l to n n e l e c tu n i n g s .

’ Co r a llin a - H o r m o s zr a A s s o cia tio n — Between tide - marks there is

- t e developed , especially in rock pools , an association in which h

' ’ ’ branched coralline Co r a ll zn a ofiiczn a l zs and the brown alga H o r m o s zr a B a n ks i T e are often fairly well mixed . h distribution of these two ’ H o r m o s zr a algae is determined by the amount of water present , ’ f Co r a l l in a Co r a l l zn a a fecting drier situations than , so that frequently w H o r m o s ir a ill grow on the floor of a pool , with fringing the water H o r m o s i r a B a n ks line and exposed during the recess of the tide . i

sometimes , especially on level rocks , forms a pure association . The ' ' ' animals associated with Co r a l l zn a and H o r m o s zr a include Tu r b o ’ s m a r a d u s e r ith id e a tr i ca r zn a l a M e l a r a h e u n i a s cia l a g , C , p f , and , in

pools , blennies and shrimps . P r h r a A s a t n — o n o p y s o ci i o . Conspicuous rocks between tide marks P o h r a l a c n a ta is an association of r p y i i . It forms large patches about

- - U l v . s e a a half tide The thallus is like that of the cabbage ( ) , but of — a pale greenish colour . It has a shining appearance when dry , and th e tips suffer a good deal from wilting during exposure to the

atmosphere . B a r n a cl e A s s o ci a ti o n — The chief animal association on rocks between tide—marks is that which occupies a belt over a yard in

- l vertical width j ust above the brown a gae formation . The rocks are ' to a large extent covered with the sessile barnacle Ch a m a e s iph o c o l n r nn a . With it are associated a number of (usually small) molluscs ’ - Ce l l a n a d e n tica l a l a o r n a ta S i h o n a r za o b li u a ta M o n o d o n ta , C . , p q , ’ ’ ' ’ co r a can a L e s ie l l a s co b zn a S h a r o c h zto n e l l is s e r e n l zs , p , yp p p , and many

others . The association is in all respects comparable with similar o A ass ciations on the ustralian coasts , but the species are , with the

' tw o exception of one or only , entirely different Within Wellington H arbour the barnacle association is present , but on the more exposed f rocks gives way to an association o mussels . Z o s te r a A s s o ci a ti o n — Extensive areas o f intertidal flats in Wel l in gto n H arbour are covered with a sward of the grass - wrack Z o s te r a ' ta s rn a n zca . With it occurs an assemblage of molluscs , including h Tu r b o s m a r a d u s M o n o d o n ta co r r o s a erbivorous species such as g , , M e th . a i o s and p , and a number of carnivorous forms , including Co rn in e l l a d l a s e r a r u o s a . l u id a . a c s . m p , C , and C , The shell locally ’ called cockle (A n tigo n a s tn l c h b u r yz) is abundant j ust below the o f surface the mud .

— - M o n o d o n ta - A m ph ib o l a A s s o cia ti o n O n mud fla ts where Z o s te r a o f does not grow , a number molluscs are found , mostly identical with Z o s te r a h those living among the . Of especial interest , owever , is A ta o f the presence o f the m ph ib o l a cr e n a . This is a member the

pulmonate o r air - breathing order o f gastropods which has returned o n to a life in the water . S o dependent now is it a continuous supply o u t of moisture , which while the tide is it gets from the moist mud ,

that it is unable to live for any length of time if kept without water . V W . R . B . OLI ER . 1 4

S TH E A A A S L A D B A Y NOTE ON M RINE F UN OF I N , L L G WE IN TON .

- - Between the tide marks are many sheltered rock pools , and in these are small fish , crabs , and a few interesting seaweeds . On the margins o f these pools and in clefts of the rock there frequently occur — ' the spirally coiled egg masses o f the large S iph o n a r za o bl iqu a ta and o f Ce l l a n a r a ia n s tu d . o r n a s A s the two common limpets and C . these

- egg masses become older many diatoms are found in them , and certain G rn n o rn xa A m o e b a a il is A s th e y y , notably g . masses deliquesce they o r tice ll a shelter a V , which , although marine , has a contractile vacuole .

In addition to the pools there are many guts or chasms in the rock , ’ o f and here there is abundance life . The brown seaweed L e s s o n za va r ie a ta it s - t o A s g , with buttress like base , gives shelter nnelid , Crus t a c e a A , and many sponges , especially Calcarea . mong the last are ’ S c o n a te d e n d z G r a n te s s a in tu s - a r ticu l a ta y y and the striking . On the ’ L e s s o n za % m n leaves and stems of the are frequently found ane o es , ' S a a r tia n a tr ix s e ve r a l a s t r o o d s g and others , as well as g p , noticeably ’ ' the beautiful little Ca n th a r zd u s d il a ta tn s and the larger Ca n th a r zd u s

o a l a s . P p The stems are often bored by olychaetes . In the more Sheltered pools is an abundant growt h o f coralline t o seaweeds , and if the masses be pulled apart they are often found D o l ich o l o s s n s ta o e n s is i I I Shelter g o g . Th s animal is from in . to % in .

f - r o e d . in length , and a bright colour It is allied to a J apanese

- species . The same seaweed Shelters many young sand stars and small

sponges and Tunicates , many developing Crustacea , and worms . These

- masses form the nursery of the rock pool fauna . e x Beneath the stones are several interesting molluscs , as , for A cm a e a r a il is S ca ms a m bi n n s ample , the small f g and the great g , whose

- flattened white shell is concealed by the spacious mantle folds , the

- x . whole surface , e cept the sole of the foot , a deep blue black Three f H ir is f H a l io tis o . species o are found . The older specimens and H r s H t a l i . i i a u s r s . . forsake the Shelter of the stones , coming down H e a u a o f . from Miocene times , is the p the Maori formerly used the o f animal as food , and the shell to form the eyes gigantic carved

- figures . Fully exposed upon the rocks , often well above high water tw o o f M e l a r a h e o f mark , are species p allies the European periwinkle tw o L itto r in a . ( ) Much less exposed , and often seeking shade , are e l l a species o f On c kid . ’ H S tich o n s m o l l zs The large olothurian , p , is abundant , and exposes

s e - fl o r itself freely where the a o is sheltered . Under stones and in the H sand smaller olothurians are found . The starfish that is most A s te r in a r e u l a r is abundant is the small , pentagonal g , usually blue , r s ta r fi s h e s but n o t infrequently yellow o green . Of other that occur A s te r ia s s c a b r a here the largest and handsomest is , usually blue above

and with red tube feet . The only known specimen (now in the Victoria College museum) of the remarkable monotypic genus E n ry '

on za s E h l a ca n th n s . g ( . y ) was found at Island Bay '

- O h i o n e r e l s s ch a e r z Of Ophiuroidea , the common sand star p y occurs

- P e ctin u r a m a cu l a ta in abundance under stones . The large brittle star , , r n e . abundant in some parts of New Zealand , occurs occasio ally h e 1 5

’ - E ve ch zn n s ch l o r o tic u s o f The common sea urchin is . It is some r e o kin a in te s t t note that the Maori name is . ’ - A ctin ea te n e br o s a Of sea anemones , the three commonest forms are ’ - Cr a d a ctzs li ca tn s (dark red in colour and exposed at half tide) , p , and

A e m o n i a o l va ce a - S n i . , the last usually olive green in colour everal other s e a - P h l cte n a ctis r e ti e r a anemones are found , including the extraordinary y f , a la rge anemone frequently found floating o r att ached to seaweeds at r o f 1 the su face , but dredged once from a d epth 5 fathoms . Pr o t o d r il id s It will be noted that there are no . These notes refer only to the commoner o r m ore interesting forms t o x that are likely be met with on the Island Bay e cursion , and are

' to f o r o n not designed serve as a basis views . the New Zealand littoral fauna as a whole . H K . B . IRK .

H L G A XH S TH E D S ET NO O IC L E IBIT IN OMINION MU EUM ,

WEL L ING TON .

In a brief article only a f e w characteristic exhibits o u t of many can be dealt with .

Ca n o e s - The three principal types of canoes used by the Maori in former times were The double canoe ( 2 ) the single - hull canoe

- with outrigger ; (3) the single hull canoe withou t outrigger . The o u t o f first two types went use many years ago , but both were seen i ’ n Cook s time . The ordinary canoe of No . 3 type may be divided

- n a . to i to three classes , as follows ( ) The big capacious war canoe , up 8 0 o 8 t . ft . in length and 7 ft . ft in width ; ornamented with carved

S - prow and tern pieces , carved Sideboards , painted devices , and feathers .

- b . ( ) Fishing canoes , used also for any form of water carriage ; plain

- prow and stern pieces . Both these types were composed o f a dugout tw o hull of one , , or three pieces ingeniously fastened together , with

o n t o c S - a top strake lashed raise the sides . ( . ) mall river canoes , h o r o r without t warts decking , and minus any attachment ornament — plain dugouts . No Specimen o f the o l d - time double and outrigger canoes has been o f a preserved , and the only specimen extant the ( ) class is that D in the A uckland Museum . The largest specimen in the ominion b Museum is of the ( ) class , used for fishing and ordinary travelling A n o l d On e o f purposes . canoe fashioned with stone tools is the most valuable specimens . o f In the cases may be seen collections paddles , balers , carved

- - prow and stern pieces , and small model canoes . Fishing gear is W h represented by a large number of hooks in ood , bone , and s ell

- o f (a few being fashioned from moa bone) , nets and traps various

- & c . kinds , carved and plain sinkers , spear points ,

H o u s e s — W e o n e - have high class carved house up , though some th e o f what impaired by absence the veranda and window , the wrong o f n o f f o r situation the e trance , and the substitution fluted boards 1 6

reedwork in the lining . The carved posts , however , are very fine

. o f specimens , all named after ancestors Interesting specimens house rafters adorned with painted devices may be seen on either side of the entrance to the main hall , and opposite that entrance the carved timbers of the front of the house . None of the highly elaborate e elevat d carved storehouses have been erected , owing to want of o f 5 space , but parts such are exhibited .

S to n e I m l e m e n ta — I n p . stone implements are seen some very fine specimens of native workmanship , as in the case of weapons and z l adzes . The collection of stone ad es is arge , showing a number of f im l e di ferent types and the processes of manufacture . Of all stone p

a in - o ments the p , a short hand weapon , is the m st symmetrical and m e r e o f is . e im l well finished The nephrite more rare . Other ston p e o f ments are pounders and beaters (used for a variety p urposes) , drills ,

- sinkers , and lamps . Of stone ornaments the neck pendant termed lze itiki was the most highly prized , and the manufacture thereof was A n hi exceedingly slow and laborious . ex bit of much interest is the f stump o a tree that was felled with stone tools .

— ’ B on e I m pl e m e n ts I n this department the mos t im po r ta n t ite m s ‘ — via h o e r o a b o l l a te are weapons , the curious long carved , the notched , ' ’ a tn a r a o a w a h a ika f a s h io n e d f r o m the p , and . These were whale s p , — b - bones . Other bone items are mallets used y carvers , spear points ,

fi s h - - O hooks , needles , cloak pins , combs , flutes , and rnaments such as f pendants o various kinds .

W o o d e n I m l e m e n ts p . In wood we have some typical Maori

’

ta ia h a o u wke n n a l e mb a l e mb a . weapons , such as , p , , and spears , fashioned A o u t of hardwood by slow processes . gricultural implements are d i in ~ im l e m e n t represented by Spades , picks , and the curious gg g p k H o . termed , resembling the old ighland spade In wood we also n d ‘ o a . find combs , flutes , trumpets , tops , other toys Carved w oden boxes illustrate the fine work done by the Maori with stone tools . s ” Vessel are of wood , as bowls , and bark deftly doubled up ; also

- bowls and water vessels of gourds , some of which are finely etched A m ir a like those of various Pacific groups and Central merica . The tn a tin i f , a curious implement made by a fixing the teeth of a species

o f . shark to a wooden handle , was used wherewith to cut flesh The f a l s o a r e curiously formed wooden co fins are specially interesting , as

- the s o called K umara gods . ‘ — Oth e r E xh ibits The two dried tattooed h u m a n h e a d s are good specimens , and must be a century old . In textiles are shown cloaks and capes woven from the dressed fibres of P h o r m iu m and Co r dyl in e by a peculiar process once employed by people o f the Mississippi region ; others o f feathers and dogskin f S fastened o n to a ground o woven fabric . leeping and floor mats ’ — are made by plaiting raw undressed strips o f P h o r m zu m leaf o r o f ' ' F r e c n e tza y z . Baskets and belts are made in similar manner . There is also a small collection o f bird snaring and trappin g

- imp lements , with some long bird spears .

ELSDON BEST .

1 8

The Polyn esian race is o n e that presents many points o f interest o o f d t students of anthropology . The question its origin has intereste

- many writers , and its feats in deep sea voyaging and colonizing across o f f o r seven thousand miles ocean have a fascination ethnologists .

Those interested in ethnographical lore , in comparative mythology , religion , and sociology , find here one of the most interesting fields f o r o f P research . Owing to its long period isolation in the acific

- o f l a region , in many far scattered lands smal rea , and to its being c u t o ff f o f - rom peoples a higher culture plane to the west and east , P a n d the olynesian race has preserved many crude processes arts . A t f a r e the same time , these neolithic olk remarkable for the o f possession of a high order mentality , and it is this fact that renders their concepts su ch an interesting study . The cosmogonic ' and anthropogenic myths o f the Maori people o f these Isles are ' ‘ ‘ remarkable productions the esoteric versions o f th e Sa m e are pitched o f e upon a high plane thought , and contain many analogies with thos o f Oriental lands . The student o f comparative religion finds much interesting data o f S in Maori lore . The superior concept the upreme Being , the o t e n tiae th e conception of variou s spiritual p , belief in two distinct

i - o f f sp rit worlds , in neither which is there any su fering inflicted on — the human s oul all these carry proof o f the remarkable powers o f introspective thought as possessed by the Maori . The belief in the purification of the human soul after death is perhaps the most o f striking result such powers . Th e universal personification that is so m arked a feature o f Maori mythology imparts a peculiarly mythopoetic aspect to the folklore , superior myths , and even to the vernacular speech of the Maori folk . No Oriental people excelled in such imagery the cannibal native s of these Isles . t o f The social system of the Maori is ano her subject much interest , inasmu ch as it illustrates certain institutions of communism that o f make for cohesion and the preservation order , and supply the

' o f t h e place civil law . In this phase of social life we find that 3 social unit neither the individual nor yet the true family , but

o r . the extended family , family group A study of the implements and industrial processes of the Maori

l o w - a c h ie ve m e n ts fi a s shows the water mark of his , for example , his

o f fi r e - a r ic u l rude methods generation and weaving , his primitive g tural implements and lack of missile weapons . On the other hand , his ingenuity and artistic talent were marked by most ingenious devices employed in taking birds , by his remarkable accomplishments

- o f in decorative art . The making of a war canoe and the building in a su perior house were tasks that proved the energy , skill , and domitable patience of the Maori artisan . A n interesting feature of Maori culture is the fact that we find therein certain arts , institutions , and artifacts that are unknown in P P olynesia , but are found in the western acific . These Mao ri Melanesian parallels seem to be traceable t o the region o f New G uinea . Quite possibly these intrusions are referable to the earliest o f a inhabitants New Zeal nd .

ELSDON BEST . I 9

PH S G A PH O S ON A K A D Y IO R IC N TE UC L N . The beautiful symmetrical R a n git o t o fitl y stands sentinel in o f o f s advance the host perfect volcanic cone which here , there , and everywhere stud the surface o f the gently rolling lowlan ds o f D A . the uckland istrict But the subdued landscape , the numerou s t - - idal creeks , the indented shore lines , the wave cut cliffs , all present o f F o r a history not less interesting than that the volcanic cones . the area occupied by A uckland City and northward o f it the history : A o f is this wide belt weak sediments , flanked westwards by a s u b m e r id io n a l volcanic range , has been largely reduced by normal t n o . erosio near sea level Elevation of the area ensues , punctuated t o o f apparently by w periods approximate standstill , marked at —o n e s o — b the present daym most clearly , the other less y erosion a it e m a t a H t surfaces immediately adj acent to W arbour . Bo h are well below the level o f widespread uplands which represent the o f maturely dissected peneplain the earlier cycle . Uplift recommences , and deep s tream - valleys are excavated in the broad erosion surface n o w l o w - o f A S conspicuous at levels north westward uckland . uddenly n s e a there is a change , and a movement of depressio causes the to ” n advance i to , or drown , the newly cut valleys , with the result — n usual in such cases the formation of umerous harbours , inlets , and, tidal creeks . S ince , the drowning waves have been actively cutting back o f c u r r e n ts in s il tin headlands , and , with the assistance tidal h g the

— - i x mangrove dotted inlet heads , and forming perfect m niature e amples o f - - barrier beaches , spits , and other such Shore line features . The subsidence has now ceased and uplift has again begun , leaving its

- traces in shore line platforms , as at Milford , raised about 5 ft . above

m - - nor al high water level , and in such small elevated strand plains ’ as those well displayed near Buckland s Beach .

’ S A o n o r outhward from uckland City , the other western coast o f H the isthmus , lies the extensive Manukau arbour , and around its shores is an area o f totally different character from that farther z o r north . In generali ed terms it is a lowland more less sharply fle xu r e bounded eastward , along a margin due to faulting and , by e o f irr gularly warped uplands resistant rock . It is largely built o f soft incoherent silts laid down in a great estuary into which the

Waikato River poured its waters , and which was separated from

S e a - o r t the Tasman by a great barrier beach , similar accumula ion , extending between resistant headlands nearly thirty miles apart .

- Behind this beach lofty sand dunes arose , and , migrating eastward , o f o To — d covered up a portion the estuarine dep sits . day the san

n o t - dune range , yet destroyed by the ever encroaching waves , forms o f the western margin the lowland . B u t the area has meantime been called upon t o share the Sharp upl ift which led to the excavation of the trenches n o w forming the o f W a ite m a t a H channels arbour , and , in like manner to this latter , the present Manukau H arbour had its birth in the movement o f h subsidence which followed t is uplift , and which seems , from evidence in the Manukau area , to have been q uantitatively only a few feet f f less than the latter in its di ferential e fect . 2 0

The commencement o f volcan ic activity manifested I n the

o - o f v lcanic cones post dates , in general , the sculpture the present

f o r - valleys , the latter are often occupied by lava streams . o f ff o f Ej ections tu , as a rule , preceded the outwelling lava a n d the ej ect ions o f the scoriae which have formed most o f the L prominent cones in and around A uckland City . ess prominent ff tu cones are , however , frequent ; with few exceptions they have n o w b o r o f s e a wide craters occupied y lakes , swamps , inlets the . R a n git o t o is the only important cone owing its main elevation t o n o f accumulatio lava . A U J . . BARTR M .

A N I TOTO S L A D N I TS G A R G I N A D VE ET TI ON .

G d t o A H uar ing the entrance uckland arbour , reaching a height f f t o irit s o f n o . nearly , and presenting from all p view a lo g , gradually curving outline crowned with a triple peak , lies the Island o f R a n it o t o o f g , the largest and the most recent the many volcanic

H o me S tu d io s Ta ka u n a h o to . [ , p , p

l - — n i a l a va - o o o F I G . R a to to 9 , g Island , Auckland , c ne with a sc ria c ne

within its crater .

o f A D H cones the uckland istrict , a locality characterized by ochstetter ” as o n e o f the most remarkable volcanic districts of the earth . t o L anding and ascending by an excellent track the summit , the o f x visitor at once notices that the whole the island , e cept the

- o f cinder cone with its wonderfully well preserved crater , consists ° lava streams with an average inclination o f from 4 t o Of th e 2 1

acres which make up its area , more than are occupied m f by these strea s . Their surface is everywhere rough and di ficult t o m o f o f o f z traverse , being co posed masses basalt all si es and

- shapes , rough and sharp edged , and piled into ridges separated by

r o r - is c o m ir egular depressions chasm like holes . That the lava p a r a tiv e l y recent is evident ; and good j udges have estimated that n o t more than five hundred o r s i x hundred years have elapsed o f o f since the close volcanic activity . No streams water exist , n o r x is could such be e pected , as the heaviest rainfall at once absorbed by the porous surface . S een from a little distance the greater part o f the island appears t o n o n be covered with a low scrubby forest , but o ce shore it is found that there are considerable areas almost bare o f vegetation a d e xcept a few lichens n mosses . From the summit of the cone these spaces stand o u t black and distinct against the dusky green

- o f the tree clad portions . The most abundant tree is the Christmas ” o r M e tr o s id e r o s to m e n to s a c o n tree , pohutukawa ( ) , which probably s titu te s - fif th s o f R a n it o t o four the ligneous vegetation . Outside g it 0 60 o n usually forms a tree 5 ft . to ft . in height , but the island it

' 2 0 f t n A b o u t Ch r is tm a s is seldom more than . , and ofte much less . o f e G r i s e l in i a it is loaded with masses crimson flowers . The broadl af ( ’ l n czd a ff - n ) takes the second place , its sti and leathery yellow gree leaves being everywhere conspicuous . Many other small trees are n o t common , but Space will allow a reference to them here . It S e n e ci o K i r kii o n e o f may be remarked , however , that , the most D r o w n beautiful shrubs in the ominion , which usually s the shade g __ i o f as o r o n h e o n dense forests an epiphyte , more rarely t ground , R a n git o t o flourish es among bare basaltic rocks exposed to bla zing sunshine G rowing in the Shade o f the M e tr o s id e r o s o r among the open o f tw o A a rocks are large masses species of s te l i . With these flourish D e n d ro biu m u n n in h a m ii B a r in a m u cr o n a ta the orchids C g , , and E s u a ve o l e n s o n R a n it o to . , species usually epiphytic , but g mainly s rupestral . With them are associated many fern and mosses , ’ Tm e s i te r zs P s il o tu m including the club mosses p and , the systematic s o R a n it o t o position of which has been often debated . g is the only locality in New Zealand where the latter is at all plentiful . t o n in One remarkable fact remains be me tioned . Elsewhere New Zealand the variou s Species of Tr ic h o m a n e s and Hym e n 0~ h l n m o f l . p y are essentially inhabitants moist , shaded forests On ’ R a n git o t o alone the kidney - fern ( Tr ic h o m a n e s r e n zf o r m e ) and three o f H m e n o h l l u m species _ _ y p y flourish among the basaltic rocks exposed

n . d to full su shine In summer the fronds are curle up , withered , and appear to be dead ; in winter they are fresh and green and vigorous , and apparently at home with their Surroundings .

R a n git o t o has many points of interest to the lover o f nature .

' o n - Its vegetation , save the cinder cone , is very much in its virgin condition , and likely to remain so . It is a matter for congratulation that the whole island is now an inalienable reserve for the benefit o f A the people of uckland .

H . T . F . C EESEMAN 2 2

‘ T H E S OF TH E W A I TA K E R E I RA G FORE T N E .

' ' ' The h earest locality t o A uckland where a really Characteristic

' exa mple o f the indigenous vegetation c a n be s e e n is the W a ita ke r e i s u Range , di tant abo t fifteen miles in a westerly direction . It f orms a much broken and dissected plateau about twenty—two miles in l w e n ength ith a width of ight or ten , its average elevation bei g about ft . On the eastern side it rises gradually from the low a undul ting country through which the northern trunk railway runs , o n P i but the western Side drops very abruptly into the ac fic Ocean , th - f 00 t o 8 0 e s e a . . 0 cli fs ranging in height from 4 ft ft . The central

Of tw o . o n e portion the plateau is occupied by streams , the N ih o t a u k H u p , flowing southwards into the Manu au arbo r ; the W a ita ke r e i a n r se S e other , the , pursuing norther cou for ev ral miles and then turning abruptly to the westward and discharging into t h e s e a l . Both these streams descend from the plateau by waterfa ls Of a ita ke r i W e . considerable height , that on the measuring 3 73 ft A t th e commencement of European settlement the whole plateau was covered with dense and luxuriant forest , and a considerable part of the central and western portions are still untouched . The l e s f o c eastern p have su fered severely , and in s me pla es are

. a denuded almost to the summit . The commonest tree is the taw

' B l w a - fif h f e i s c h m ze d i a ta t s o . ( ) , which probably forms three the forest ' ’ M e tr o s id e r o s r o b u s ta th e Other common species are the rata ( ) , ' ' K x e l t a n e a o L its ae a ca l i ca r zs n i h ti a e c s a . g ( ) , and the rewarewa ( g )

’ L arge forests of the kauri (A ga th i s a n s tr a l zs ) formerly existe d o n th e n the eastern slopes , but practically whole of these have bee c u t A down . considerable quantity still remains in the central o f and western parts of the district , and , as the first these is now

Th e - o r reserved , much may yet escape destruction . red pine , ’ ’ A D a cr d zn m cn r e s s zn n m . rimu ( y p ) , is still comparatively plentiful ' f e w P itto s o r u m K ir kii D r im s a xill a r zs I xe r b a species like p , y , and b r e xio i d e s are confined to the higher part of the plateau . The ' undergrowth is chiefly composed o f A l s e n o s mza m a cr ophyll a the ’ Rh i o o n n m s ca n d e n s F r e czn e ti a B a n ks ii a nd % supplej ack ( p g ) , kiekie ( y ) , ' ’ A s te l za G a h m a a r e a various species of and . Ferns bundant , espe c ia l l H e y in the deep and narrow gullies , where the ymenophyllac ae h e _ are particularly well represented . In t higher central valleys H the ground is carpeted with mosses and epaticae , particularly ' ' H n u m I s o l h e cin m H o te r zn m P l a l o c ln l a , , g , g , of _ the g enera yp yp p y and ‘ G o tts k e c a a . A l together the W a ita ke r e i Range affords an excellent illustration o f o f v . the forest northern New Zealand , and is well worth a isit

CH . T . F . EESEMAN

TH E K A URI FORE ST .

' ’ A a l l as a u s tr a l zs i m r e s s 1 ve The kauri pine ( g ) , the most noble and p o f - o n e the forest trees of New Zealand , and with few equals in other n countries , has a limited range , being confined to the district betwee the North Cape and a line drawn from Tauranga H arbour o n the

. 2 4

K A east coast to awhia o n the west . lthough it will flourish in almost all soils and situations save those which are exceedingly wet , %

- it prefers hilly and so mewhat rugged l ocalities and .a . poor and l clayey soil . Usually it forms little clumps or s mal groves rather than continuous forests . These groves may contain from a dozen n o f to a hu dred or many hundreds trees . Usually they are separated h by forest tracts in w ich few kauris are present . Rarely the groves h e may almost coalesce , forming a forest in which the kauri is t ' dominant although by no means the sole tree . Nowadays such instances are rare ; f o r the ravages of Sixty years o f sawmilling o f s have swept the forest out exi tence , or very greatly changed its appearance , reducing what was once a noble and magnificent spectacle n to a scene of utter ruin and desolatio .

’ ' G - — K b A t l z l d r z o o n o o 1 1 . s e a S o a n F I . The ahaka a ( ) gr wing the sm th trunk B l e c u m l i o r m e o o f the taraire . The climbing fern h n fi f c vering — n tree trunks o the right .

A kauri forest has a very remarkable and distinctive appearance .

' ' Even when seen from afar it can b e recogni zed by the m a n n e r in t which the trees stand far above the adj oining forest , by heir

- peculiar ramification , and by the dark , dusky green colour of the h foliage . But it is from the interior of the forest t at the kauri is t seen to the best advantage , and its maj es ic size and noble propor l tions c a n be best appreciated . On all sides rise the huge co umnar

80 . trunks , sometimes towering up for more than ft without a branch , w y and tapering but slightly from the base up ards , smooth , gre , and A t glistening . the base of the trunk is the large mound of debris produced by the fall of the bark which is regularly cast o ff in large flakes . It is from this peculiarity that the bole of the kauri

2 6

n z becomes more transparent , formi g lumps ranging in si e from small

- in tear drops to masses many pounds weight . These pieces may o f o r be found in the forks the branches , in hollows depressions o n

o r - the trunk , concealed in the mound of debris at its base . But , a d d itio n t o in the resin met with in the living kauri forest , very much larger quantities c a n be found buried at various depths o n

o f - the sites previous forests , although these must have ceased t o o r exist for hundreds even many thousands of years . That t hes e deposi ts are in many cases of enormous antiquity can be pr o ved b y the changes that have taken place in the physical configuration - o f

u K - the co ntry since they were formed . auri gum has been found under the beds of shallow lakes ; it has been dug up in quantity at considerable depths in swamps ; and it has been excavated from strata overlaid by sand - dunes themselves - o i no very recent formation

‘ while in not a few localities it has been observed . in beds dipping o f s e a o n A under the present level the , and the uckland Isthmus

- in strata overlaid by lava streams .

' A l l through the North A uckland Peninsula are l a r ge a r e as of u rolling open lands of poor quality , intersected by swampy g llies , and covered with a heath - like vegetation mainly composed o f

- L e to s e r m u m s co a r iu m tea tree ( p p p ) and other shrubs , together with sedges , a few herbaceous plants , terrestrial orchids , and some ferns .

A lmost everywhere these areas contain deposits of kauri - gum sometimes close to the surface , at other times buried at considerable u m fie l d s depths . These g , as they are called , have for many ” f i o f - years a forded a l ving to some thousands gum diggers , who annually produce from to tons of gum . These nomadic diggers , wandering over hill and swamp , armed with spade and

- t o gum spear , are a familiar and picturesque sight travellers in the

North A uckland districts . It may well be asked in what manner did the kauri forests o f the a past disappear , what vegetation succeeded them , and wh t have been the series o f changes which have resulted in the present plant fi l o f u m e d s . covering the g The answer to these questions is , however , still uncertain and incomplete .

T . F . CHEESEMA N .

K D S A UC L A N MU EUM .

Probably that portion of the Museum which will prove most H interesting to a visitor from abroad is the Maori all , which is a n d devoted to collections illustrating the manners , customs , mode H o f life o f the Maori race . ere can be seen a magnificent example ,

8 - d e c o r a t e d f r o m 4 ft . in length , of a war canoe , carved and end to

. end , and in a perfect state of preservation It is the last survivor of the fleets o f war - canoes mentioned by all early travellers and explorers from the time o f Cook to the establishment of British rule . ka ir o H t o o w h a r e w h a , ere , , will be found a superb specimen of a or

- meeting house , without which no Maori village in olden times would b e considered complete . Two elaborately carved storehouses are

ff - also exhibited . These di er from the meeting houses in their carv ings and other ornamentation being on the outside of the h ouse

- o f in stead o f in the interior . Round the walls the hall are placed o f h many ancient and valuable carvings , several t em dating back 2 7

to t o a time long prior the introduction of iron tools . In the show

cases are arranged the smaller articles . The visitor should pay special attention to a case devoted t o the exhibition o f a series o f

f - to carved co fins or burial chests , sixteen in number , used receive o f S the bones of chiefs high rank . everal of these are believed to be tw o o l d from hundred to three hundred years . Within the limits o f a short notice it is impossible to mention more than a fraction of the many treasures conta ined in this part o f S f the Museum . u fice it to say that almost all the features of

Maori life are well represented . Their weapons ; their axes , gouges , — and Chisels ; their fi s h hooks and fi s h in g - implements ; their bird snares and bird - spears ; their miscellaneous tools and implements ; their elaborately carved feather boxes ; their musical instruments ; their varied personal ornaments ; their cloaks and other articles of — c a s e s il l u s tr a t e d b clothing all are to be seen , and in most y numerou s ’ ' l n i H examp es . In a roo adj oining the Maori all is a small foreign ethnographical collection , serviceable for comparison with the work o f the M aoris . l c e l l e c tio n The main hall is devoted to the zoological and geologica s . In the centre of the l ower floor stands an elaborate group comprising a skeleton of the largest species of moa (D in o r n is m a xim n s ) and a — 1 0 S life size restoration , ft . in height , of the bird itself . urrounding — these are exampl es of the nearest living allies of the moa th e ostrich , the emu , and the cassowary . Occupying the remainder of the centre of the hall are some fine groups of mammals obtained under the provisions of a special bequest made by the late Mr . th e a Mackechnie . In the wall cases on the north and east sides of h ll are placed the foreign birds on the south Side the sm aller mammals .

The New Zealand birds , of which the Museum possesses a fairly o o n representative c llection , will be found the north side of the gallery ; the fishes are shown on the south side ; while the reptiles , z including a varied set of preparations of the celebrated tu atara li ard ,

e n d . must be sou ght for at the eastern The geological collections , both New Zealand and foreign , are placed in a separate room opening H o u t on the Maori all .

T . F . CHEESEMAN .

S ROTORUA A N D TA U PO D I STRICT .

o f The Town Rotorua , near the southern extremity of the lake

- o f n 1 1 A . the same ame , is 7 miles by rail south east from uckland The surrounding d istrict forms part of w hat is known as the thermal

l - belt o r region of the North I s and . This region extends north east u ward from Mount R u a pe h ft . ) to White Island in the Bay o f P I 0 lenty, a distance of over 5 miles , and contains within its limits

- several semi active volcanoes , numerous geysers , and countless hot i Spr ngs . The prevailing rocks are andesites , rhyolites , agglomerates ,

f . tu fs , and pumiceous drifts , late Tertiary to Recent in age These in many places have been profoundly altered by the action of heated waters and vapours . o f The thermal district contains many lakes , some which fill d o w n w a r e d explosion cavities , whilst others occupy p hollows or areas d ammed by volcanic debris .

2 9

The chief points o f interest near Rotorua are the S an atorium n grou ds , with several boiling springs and artificial geysers ;

H - amurana , a large cold water spring ; Tikitere , with immense po ols o f l W h a k a r e w a r e w a fiercely boi ing mud ; and , where one may see f H o . o every phase solfataric action ere are mud volcan es , sinter

- deposits , steam vents , numerous boiling springs , and geysers , the o f a s Po h u t u largest which are known and Wairoa . — A bout fifteen miles south east of Rotorua is Mount Tarawera 1 0th 1 886 which in the early morning of the J une , , A n . s 1 0 suddenly burst i to eruption a result 3 lives were lost , and A the surroun ding country buried by the ej ected debris . great rift — o r — , rather , series of explosion cavities nine miles in length , was R to m a h a n a n . o o u t formed The bottom of a small lake , , was blow ,

/

- F I G I : o f o o o f 1 8 86 . . 4 Map Tarawera v lcanic rift after the erupti n

% S and the adj oining Pink and White Terraces destroyed . ince the L R o to m a h a n a o ld eruption a new ake , much larger than the lake , h a s L been formed . The Tarawera rift , the maj or axis of ake Roto o f mahana , and Waimangu , greatest geysers , lie on an approximately l A straight ine . S a geyser Waimangu was in regular operation only 1 00— during the years 9 4 , but in later years there have been several spasmodic outbursts . A o f 1 2 2 bout the end May , 9 , a long series of earthquakes began o f L a n d o f in the district at the north end ake Taupo , at the time D e er e o n writing had not entirely ceased . uring Jun there w days which at least a hundred shakes were perceptible to the sen s es . The f shocks were nearly all mild , but a few were su ficiently strong to shake articles o ff shelves and slightly to d a mage chimneys .

P G . G . . MOR AN 3 0

TH E PL A TL OF TH E H OT L A K S D S N IFE E I TRICT .

Th e pumice substratum , notwithstanding the considerable rain in o f fall , many places has only permitted the establishment a more o r x s o less erophytic vegetation , that the commonest plant formation L e to s e r m u m s c o a r iu m is shrubland with p p p dominant . Where there is the poorest and driest soil there m a y be almost pure stands of

‘ D r a c o h l l n m s n b u l a l n m p y , a shrub virtually confined to the Volcanic D A Plateau Botanical istrict . very beautiful plant with the same e G a u l th e r ia o o s iti o l i a rang as the above epacrid is pp f , which , when it ' G r u e s tr zs . grows in company with p a species of extremely wide range , ' G a i o l za gives rise to the polymorphic hybrid . f g f e Where soil conditions , climate , and shelter permit tre s to be

is t a x a d - established there a fine rain forest . For instance , splendid forest , but now much reduced in area , can be seen from the train at

Mamaku . f The e fect of heated ground , together with the special Chemical &c characteristics of the soil in the vicinity of hot springs , fumeroles , . , i brings about both epharmonic Changes in , plast c species and the

n . establishme t of special plant associations Thus , the low tree or ’ tall shrub L ep to s p e r m u m e r ic o zd e s is changed to a prostrate shrub ; n ic u l a tu s L e u co o o a s c t. yet p g f , with usually an ecologically equivalen

- growth form , under identical conditions remains quite erect . Where exposed to steam from a stream of hot water various pte r id o ' ’ h t e s G l e iclze n za c ir c zn a l a p y grow with extreme luxuriance , especially , n L o i m e r n u u m H i s ti o te r is i c is a c o d u c . p , and y p Certain ferns in the area b eing considered are restricted to places where the steam is ' : G l e zc h e n i a l in e a r is S c h iza e a d ic h o to m a especially powerful such are , , o d i o l ia D r o te r i s a r a s itica D o n o I n h r l e is c r . l d e s N e o . p p f , y p p , and g gy ° the hot pools themselves with a maximum t e m p e r a t m e of 75 C S h iz h e a e there is an association of c o p yc . The eruption o f Mount Tarawera in 1 886 led to a considerable area o f vegetation being buried s o deeply by volcanic a s h that an

o f - absolutely new habitat , destitute plant life , was provided for z a plant coloni ation . Nineteen years after the eruption the deep w ter o i l e s c i o n courses the steep p were o cup ed thickly , except their ’ n i u a o r i a za s a r m e n to s a A r n n d o c o s c C r . I ridges , by p and (fig 5) On the in flatter ground the new vegetation was extremely open . The most t e r e s tin g point is that none o f the colonizing species had come any

e . distanc , for all were plants of the immediate neighbourhood On Tarawer a itself and the area adj acent there are multitudes of the flat ’ R a o u l za a u s tr a l is cushions of a variety of , j ust as certain members o f - the same genus , after the destruction of the tussock grassland , A occupied the depleted slopes of Central Otago . large maj ority o f n o f these pla t settlers were wind borne , the number species brought f n by birds being very e . L ’ . COCKAYNE .

3 2

G A A A L PA K TH E TON RIRO N TION R .

P o n e o f o f The Tongariro National ark , the five national p arks in W a im a ka r ir i New Zealand (the others be g Mount Egmont , the , S o n e Mount Cook , and the ounds) , is the chief located in the North w Island , and includes ithin its boundaries the great volcanic cones h N a u r u h o e r o f R u a e u . p , g , and Tonga iro L argely owin g t o the presence o f t h e volcan oes o f the Tongariro P N e w h a s i National ark , Zealand a reputat on as a volcanic country n f hi . n o t o w ch is e tirely deserved . True , at various epochs bygone geo logical eras there have b een districts where volcanic action has S D been intense , notably in the outh Island near unedin , at Banks a o f S th A Peninsula , at the eastern b se the ou ern lps , in Marlborough , in in n o f A o n and the North I sland the vici ity uckland , Coromandel n o f a n d Pe insula , near the Bay Islands , at Egmont ; but the greater part o f the land su r face has been formed by the more orderly o f w h processes denudation , sedimentation , and vertical uplift in hic h a s paroxysmal action played a very subordinate part . On the whole , t o f e s e c i the Ter iary era was the time greatest volcanic activity , p in i a in ally the North Island , and present day man fest tions , interest g in a though they may be , Show a decline energy which may her ld B ut approaching extinction . periodicity is such a characteristic o f n n f o r feature volca ic actio that we cannot predict this certain , a n d present decline may be merely the prelude to more in tense f in . t o n al o activity the near future If this is occur , the the v ue a volcanic observatory would be very great indeed . The on ly existing active foci in the North Island lie o n a line stretching in a north - east direction from R u a p e h u towards White o f P o f o f I sland , in the Bay lenty, but several the points special

d - P r interest are locate within the actual boundaries of the a k . Its most striking landscape feature is Mount R u a p e h u n o t s o o r - graceful symmetrical as Egmont , but still a noble looking mountain , undwarfed by any neighbouring height , and rising from a circular base some forty miles in circumference t o a summ it o f tru n cated by a crater nearly a mile across . The appearance size is in creased by the fact that it rises direct from a plateau f o r close o n ft . with slopes which are regular and unin terrupted . I t is o f a composite cone , perhaps a twin cone , constructed of flows lava

r a ifi e d o f - and i n te r s t t layers ash and scoria . The summit crater is a h a s C lmost filled with ice , which used the hollow as a ollecting

n l o w - ground , the excess overflowi g the parts of the crater ring c h ie fl o f m y towards the east , while a part moves in the direction a s all in a hot lake the middle of the crater , formed by the ction of the o n escaping steam the ice , the supply of water being constantly replenished by the melting o f the small icebergs which break a way

- from the ice front as it reaches the hot water . The lake is about

00 . 4 ft across , and is depressed considerably below the general level

o f the ice in the crater . No doubt its conditions vary somewhat R u h u with the varying activity of the volcano . a p e has never dis

played within historic times any pronounced activity , though the lake o n top is hot and has occasionally discharged mud over the slopes i o f the mountain . Its scenic interest is ncreased by the presence o f

3 4

o f o n z a considerable amount ice the outer slopes , which is organi e d

in places into definite glaciers . A bout ten miles north - east o f R u a pe h u lies the beautiful sugarloaf cone o f N ga u r u h o e which is separated from it by a distinct — in hi and low saddle fact , there is no apparent geograp cal connection

w o s - bet w een the t mountains . The la t named cone is always more o r a n d o n 1 0 h as less active , numerous occasions , notably in 9 9 , it a discharged ashes over the surrounding country , and lav has been in reported as occurring the throat of the crater . The last discharge 1 86 o f lava may have occurred as late as 9 , when there was a some o n s what se vere eruption , but doubt has been cast thi statement . The crater is continually altering in form a s a result o f the constantly o f S recurring periods activity . team and sulphurous gases frequen tly form clouds which envelop the cone , and should be avoided , if possible , b y persons making the ascent . A bout two mi les farther o n in linear sequence lies Tongariro e a somewhat shapel ss mass , which is apparently the base f R u a e h u ee o a volcano , analogous in bulk to p , whose top has b n x destroyed by a paro ysmal explosion . On the irregular summit thus e o n R u a e h u a u r u h o e l ft , and a line with both p and Ng , lie two active N a u r u h o e points , the Red Crater and Te Mari g may be regarded as belonging to the same series , for it is apparently a point o n o f T o f activity located the truncated summit a greater ongariro ,

- and is really a secondary cone . The Red Crater has within recent h h a s . a s geological times discharged lava , , and mud The crater been — breached by a lava flo w which has run down into another o f the h a crateral hollows on the to p of Tongariro . Te Mari s at times been w n a s quite active , and has thro ashes as far the northern shore A t n o f Lake Taupo . the present time it is dischargi g steam and sulphurous gases . Between these two active centres lies an extinct crater now

L 0 . o n e occupied by the Blue ake (5, 57 ft of the most picturesque o ff and weird spots o n the top of the mountain . Both on and the line of active vents are others which were formerly of importance , Otu r e r e though some of the craters , such as the Crater , may have been o f areas of collapse rather than of extrusion . On the northern side

L - K e t e ta h i H o t S the mountain facing ake Roto aira are the prings , noted for their thermal activity . There are o n e or two other points o n the Park which present R u a e h u f eatures of interest , notably the lakes on the saddle between p d N a u r u h o e P a n g , called Nga una a Tama , which occupy the sites o f small explosion - craters ; while to the west o f R u a p e h u l ies the

H a u h a n a ta h i 8 . bu ttress of g (4 , 9 3 ft volcanic in origin , and evidently R u a e h u belonging to the p series , j udging from the similarity in the o f na ture o f their lavas . On the eastern flank the mountain lies the — R a n gipo D esert perhaps the only true desert in New Zealand o f formed of scoria and ash washed from the upper slopes the volcano , with masses o f lava rising at intervals through the loose d ebris . — The line o f volcanic vents continues north east beyond the limits P P o f L t o f the ark , through ihama , south ake Taupo hrough Taupo M o tu ka iko itself , where the Island of and its outlying reefs give

n - evidence of volcanic activity , to Ta hara , near the north east corner 35 o f s o the lake and on to Tarawera , Mount Edgecumbe , Whale Island , — and White Island the last being a very active centre . The foundation o f these volcanoes was laid during the m iddle and latter part of the Tertiary era o n underlying sedimentaries of early

Mesozoic age , but the extrusive processes became most active during P n the Early leistoce e and later , the volcanic development being no o n c o n doubt a manifestation attendant , though not necessarily a o f a sequence of , the elevation of the central portion the North I sl nd .

The deeply entrenched beds of the Rangitikei , Wanganui , and Mokau z e Rivers , which rise in the vicinity of the volcanic one , d monstrate n this upward movement , and there is biological evide ce based on the distribution of plants and animals wh ich suggests th at an arm of the s e a x e isted in late Tertiary times right into the heart of the Island , n h if not actually across it , dividing it i to two or more detac ed t fragments , which have been subsequently j oined as a result of hese

elevatory movements . The first eruptions of the region were in all probability rh yolitic o f i in character , since there is a widespread distribution pum ce of that n ature in Tertiary sedimentary d eposits of the surrounding

- flo w s o f h country , as well as lava the same lithological c aracter over a more restricted area ; but these do not show within the limi ts of the th Park . If they do exist they are completely masked by e l ater

n - h volca ic material , which consists of augite hyperst ene andesites and

- hornblende hypersthene andesites , the former being far in excess of

the latter in geological importance . D uring the last stages a little A olivine appears , indicating a more basic facies . lthough the and e R u a e h u sites form the most recent rocks of p and its associated cones , there is an extensive deposit of pumice over the whole central area o f ces the Island , forming a thin veneer in most pla , bu t thick drifts

- along the watercourses and at times on the mountain slopes . The recency of this pumice covering is Shown not only from its position on

the top of all other surface material , but from its containing charred logs in such numbers and in such positions as point to the d estru ction

o f the forests at a quite recent date . The source o f this pumice is a s doubtful , but it has been suggested that it came from Taupo the result o f a paroxysmal explosion which formed the basin n o w

. t e c occupied by the lake The general evidence , however , points to th e n tonic movements as being responsible for formatio of this basin . d The, earthquakes recently recorde from that district Clearly indicate that the crust in its vicinity has n o t yet re ach e d a condition of

st ability S G T R . PEI H .

TH E PL A NT - L IFE OF TH E TONG A RI RO NA TIONA L PA RK A N D I TS S ENVI RON .

The area here dealt with includes the loftiest part o f the North

Island , together with its extension to the Main Trunk line from

Waiouru to Waimarino . Nothing is said about the forest associa f tions , since such do not di fer greatly from those in certain other a parts of the North Isl nd . What follows is devoted to the flora o f o f and vegetation the open country , nearly all which lies at an

altitude of more than ft . _ 36

s The pteridophyte and spermophyte flora , limited as above , consist

- o f about 1 85 Species belonging to forty three families and ninety - s ix

. genera The most important to note of the species are the following , which do not extend to the S outh Island some (marked with a st a r) P are very rare , or wanting , except in the Volcanic lateau Botanical D : R a n u n c u l u s n ivic o l a P im e l e a istrict or its immediate neighbourhood , * b u xi o l i a D r a c o li l l n m r e cu r va m D n b n l a * * . s tn m L o a n i a d e r e s s a f , p y , , g p ,

- * a e i te tr a o n a V H * * e r o n ic l a v s V. ke r i a n a . o o V. s a th u l a ta On r is ia V , g , , p , * o l e n s o i E u h r a s ia tr ic o l o r R a o u l i a a u s tr a l is a l o e r e C , p , and var . b s ic a R a e r i ce a . l b o s t Coming to the vegeta ion , the most characteristic plant association is that of the desert . That there should be such a feature o f the landscape in a forest climate seems a paradox . But it is not a e d a h ic d e s e r t climatic but an p , its presence depending on the porous o f pumice soil , little retentive moisture and easily moved by the

- wind , and the loose scoria of the mountain slopes . It is also , in — part , a primary stage of succession which has its climax according t o - in - fi e l d - o r e circumstances pumice fell , tussock grassland , ven

% is forest . In places there retrogressive desert part o f the a t a u D O n p esert) . The most characteristic species o f the association is D r a c o pli yl l i i m r e cu r va m F r o , which forms reddish open cushions or almost mats . w b y quently the pumice sand blo n the wind builds dunes , which ,

% gaining stability through certain plants having secured a footing , o f sometimes support more than twenty kinds shrubs , herbs , semi

- woody plants , and grasses . The ultra desert species which occupy , L u zn l a o l e n s o i at wide intervals , unstable slopes of scoria are C , l a to n i a a n s tr a l a s ica G e n ti a n a b e l l id i o l ia e r o n ic a s a tli u l a ta C y , f , and V p ; l a to n i a but elsewhere the C y is often found at times in shallow water , and the gentian under highly mesophytic conditions .

Next in interest to the above is the pumice fell - fie l d (named by me originally shrub - steppe occupying fla tt is h ground at about an altitude of ft . to ft . The plants grow on low , flat mounds of fine pumice and humus . The usual species present

—fi v e - number twenty (fifteen shrubs , six semi woody plants and herbs ,

- three tussock grasses , and one fern) .

Tussock - gra ssl and occupies much of the lower part of the Open t n a a u r u b r a D r a co h l n m n D a n li o i R o l ii . l cou try , with var dominant , and p y h r a s a tr l o r s n b n l a l n m and the be a utiful E u p i ic o as characteristic species .

- Finally , the winter bogs must be noted , where the plants endure extreme conditions , since the habitat becomes dry in summer .

‘ in a u s H o l a e n a l a te r i l o r a m in o r Ca r h a a l in a Or e o b o l n s e c t t . p p , p , yp f var , and Ce l m i s i a gl a n d u l o s a are common members of this peculiar association . L CO CKAYNE .

' E AL L OF L S TH E G EOL OG Y OF TH MINER BE T NE ON . The Mineral Belt of Nelson and west Marl borough is a great f s ix band o magnesian igneous rocks , varying from miles to about half a mile in width , which stretches in a very definite and little ’ D U r vil l e broken line for about seventy miles , from Island at the

- north - east o f Nelson Province approximately south westward to the 37

o f upper waters the Wairau River in west Marlborough . It forms o f t o rugged country strong relief , which , according Bell , Clarke , o f a n and Marshall , represents a portion ancient dissected peneplain o f n o f S covering a great part the norther portion the outh Island . The areas occupied by the magnesian rocks are generally detected

very readily in the field , even at considerable distance , by the peculiar

and stunted nature of their vegetation , which contrasts strikingly

- b a with that flourishing on the near y reas of , sedimentary rock . r vo H ‘ . n N 1 8 D . a n d In 59 F ochstetter visited elson , , as a result , his well - known publications early demonstrated the e xceedingly interesting nature of the ultrabasic igneous rocks of the Mineral l D . c Belt to petrologists throughout the wor d unite , a rock o m w a s posed almost wholly of somewhat granular olivine , named by H D u n ochstetter after Mountain a conspicuous , brown ,

- u r m in e rit o f grass covered , ro nded knob , p o near the Town Nelson ,

- and composed in large part of this rock . Even before the visit o f the eminent A ustrian geologist the Mineral Belt had become famous in the early fifties o n account of its alluring but illusory

- deposits of copper ores and . chromite , which were even then being

- mined at various places near Nelson , and north eastwards at Cr o is e l l e s ’ r vill e and D U Island . L ittle is known o f the geology o f the Mineral Belt other than h a s that portion near the Town of Nelson , which been described

comparatively recently by Bell , Clarke , and Marshall in G e o l ogica l 2 S u r vey B u l l e tin N o . 1 For this reason the present description o r D u n applies chiefly to this latter , the Mountain area .

S tratigraphically the ultrabasic rocks form Sill - like masses intrusive

r Pe r m - into a gillites , greywackes , and coarser rocks of o Carboniferou s m age (or thereabouts) , which are quite insignifica ntly etamorphosed u M a it a i by the intr sion . In the same ( ) series there is a prominent n somewhat argillaceous limestone , which for early nin e miles forms o f th e the west wall magnesian intrusion . Westward o f the lime stone the argillites appear to underlie with perfect conformity c o n ~ glomerates and fossiliferous sandstones containing middle and upper o Triassic forms . The limestone and some f the closely adj acent M a it a i r , D r argillites of the se ies are sparingly fossiliferous , and . C . T .

Tr e ch m a n n n F - has assig ed a ermo Carboniferous age to them . The stratigraphical relations of these strata to the Triassic seem explicable o n o r o v e r th r u s tin c o m only the supposition of overfolding g , or a

bination of the two , and there is indeed strong evidence of faulting

in topography and in the actual in - tilting of Tertiary strata along th e the west margin of the Triassic rocks , where comparatively lofty strike ridges in which they outcrop border the low—lying Waimea P lain . ‘ In facies the rocks of the intrusive z one are highly interesting , but have been very incompletely studied from areas not inclu ded

D u n S . H in the Mountain ubdivision ere serpentine , derived from

- z the olivine enstatite rock har burgite , forms the main portion o f

the mass , and exhibits local gradation into fresh harzburgite . Near D u n Mountain itself there is serpentine derived from the dunite

D - outcropping in that mountain . yke like intrusions of doleritic

and dioritic rock are fairly numerous , chiefly as a western fringe to the ultrabasic rocks near their contact with the enclosing n sediments . The most i teresting dykes , however , are those o f 38

websterite , a remarkable , coarse , diallage rock with subordinate o f enstatite , and an unusually rare rock called rodingite which , ~

- 1 ° 0 1 . a has an exceedingly high lime content (3 r per cent ) and very high specific gravity

a name by which it continued to be known for many years , but a Bell , Clarke , and Marsh ll determined the supposed saussurite as — grossularite (lime aluminium g arnet) , and introduced a new name ,

n - rodi gite , for the roc k . The coarse greenish white crystals of o n r a c ti the grossularite are moulded subordinate diallage , which is p

cally the only other constituent , and often Show alteration to a

mineral identified as prehnite . The normal rodingite occurs as more o r less narrow dykes intrusive throughout the general perid otite ,

but varieties termed prehnite rodingite and serpentine - prehnite r e rodingite , in which prehnite has replaced the original g ossularit , form an important belt separated from the eastern m a rgin of the

peridotites by a strip of sediments over half a mile wide .

In discussing the origin of the rodingite , Bell , Clarke , and Marshall rej ect any possibility of assimilation of adj acent limestone f by the magnesian magma , and suggest some form of di ferentiation

as the controlling cause . — s in e l l e d A chrome iron ore , or more strictly a p mineral inter

mediate between chromite and picotite , forms separate grains in the

d unite and serpentine , and is frequently segregated in the latter

- to form nodules and small , discontinuous , scattered , lens like veins which furnished n early tons of ore before mining operations 1 86 D u n 6 . were abandoned in The Mountain tramway , a popular o f route to the top the mountain , was built in order to transport

this ore . —z Copper lodes occur in shear ones in shattered serpentine , and in the D u n Mountain area are found chiefly near wh ere the serpentine merges into the dolerites and diorites forming the western margin o f the Mineral Belt . The lodes are numerous but highly dis

continuous , and only a comparatively few feet in greatest dimension . A fter a long unprofitable struggle since 1 855 against unfavourable

c . onditions , mining practically ceased about twelve years ago The site of the most important operations % was in the valley of Roding

- D u n . River , a few miles south west of Mountain In this area the u n gangue is chiefly serpentine o r occasionally rodingite . The oxidized ore shows tw o main associations— cupriferous pyrrhotite

- 1 . (containing up to 5 per cent of copper) and minor chalcopyrite ,

h . both intimately intermixed , or else pyrr otite and native copper o f In both the pyrrhotite is the earlier mineral , and the presence native copper with it is ascribed by the authors of the D u n Mountain f th e bulletin to di ferential oxidation of the pyrrhotite , though con

d itio n s permitting such oxidation are not stated . The same writers consider that the lodes are genetically connected with the intrusions o f rodingite . The oxidized superficial portions o f the lodes sho w the usual

minerals , and from some of the outcrops large blocks of native

Copper have been obtained .

P . Mr . C . Worley states that Specks of platinum have been found , a s o f o f might be expected , in the alluvium some the streams draining the peridotite belt . A T U J . . BAR R M . 39

TH E VEG ETA TION OF A PORTION OF TH E MINERA L L BE T .

A fter following the easy but gradually ascending track to th e

D u n Mountain (Nelson) for some miles through noble southern - beech

N o th o a u s - t ( f g ) forest , the tree community abruptly comes to a hal ” and the widest part of the celebrated Mineral Belt is entered , its barren - l ooking vegetation offering a striking contrast to the tall green trees at its margin . This sudden alteration in the nature and aspect o f the plant covering is apparently due to the high magnesian

. content of the soil But the change , almost without transition , from

- luxuriant forest to xerophytic shrubs , tussock grassland , and bare rocky ground to no small extent exaggerates th e barren aspect of the Mineral ” ff o r Belt vegetation , for really it is not di erent in appearance ecological characteristics to certain other allied communities o f the s o - called dry e . n New Zealand mountains Most of the speci s , indeed , are commo P im e l e a u l e r i enough , but there are a few local end emics S , M o s o ti s M o n r o i al o f P o a a cicu l a r o l i a y , perhaps so the local forms if

‘ Ca s s i n i a a lb id a s o - C o r o s m a Cu n n i n h a m and , as also the called p g ii

F e s tu ca S - and a species of . uch forest trees as overstep the line a r e ‘ — c N o l h o a u s u s ca N cl i o r l d e s t o . io i e in m a n n a dwarfed shrubs g , f g f , jj , W i

r a ce m o s a . , and some others

is o f - fie l d The vegetation made up shrubland , fell , and tall tussock

l - D a n th o n ia a grass and , the last named with rather small fl ve s ce n s dominant . The following are common members of the shrubland P li o r m iu m ' l e i E xo ca r u s B id wil lii N o th o a u s u s ca N o n s o . cl i o r l i o id e s C , p , f g f , fi , m d iva r i ca tu m H m e n a n th e r a d e n l a ta ; va r a itto s o r u . l in a L e P p , y p , pto 6 s e r m u m s co a r iu m . p p (sometimes dominant , from ft high to prostrate) , G r i s e li n i a l itto r a l i s C a th o d e s a ce r o s a S u l l o n i a d iva r ica ta Ve r , y , , o n ica b u xi li a s V. o p . (apparently related to f , perhaps locally endemic) , t d s m a C C o e i i s i . u n n n h o r o s m a r o in u a . i a m ii u n C p p p q , f , C g (or an Ol e a r i a vir a ta a s s in i a a l bid a described species) , g var C var . In places the association gets more and more open until it merges in to the f l l ~fi l e e e d . The latter , where the ground is xtremely stony with r many loose stones on its su face , is represented by but few species , s t N o to l h l a s i a u s tr a l e P im e l e a S u l e r i the mo interesting being p , , M o o t s M o r Co l o b a n th u s u ite n s i s s i n o i . q , and y Other species of fell l a to n a a u tr a l P o a a cicu l a r i o l ia . i s a s ica L e to field are f var , C y , stunted p

' s e r m u m s co a r iu m D r a co k l l u m r o s m a r in i o l i u m H e licli r s u m p p , p y f , and y b e l li d i o id e s (very grey in colour) . r The fo egoing lists are far from complete , but , in any case , the t o flo r u l a is quite small . It is interesting note that none o f the species o f Ol e a r i a o r S e n e ci o s o characteristic of subalpine scrub are

- present , while the shrubland itself is closely related to river terrace scrub . In conclusion it must be pointed o u t that the remarkable plant i covering s o briefly described in this note , together w th the virgin

d o m a in m th e h forest adj acent , form that splendid national Cawt ron — o f Park given by the late Mr . T . Cawthron to the people New

Zealand . L . CO CKAYNE . 40

TH E CA VVTH R ON S L S IN TITUTE , NE ON .

The Cawthron I nstitute o f S cientifi c Research owes its origin to the m u n ific e n t o f th e o f bequest late Thomas Cawthron , merchant , Nelson , who left the sum o f nea rly for the purchase of land and t h e e s ta b l is h m e n t o f

h and maintenance a technical school , institute , a n d b e n museum , to called the Cawthron I stitute . o f n o f On the advice a commissio New Zealand scientific men , i t d t was ecided tha the Institute should be a research Institute , the c hief obj ect o f which should be t o in vestigate problems in co nnec t o f N e w ion with the industries Zealand , particularly agriculture and h orticulture . F e l l w o r th o f , the site the Institute , is a large private house w e o f f hich has be n fitted up as a collection laboratories , o fices , a

m . useum , and a library ' The museum is o f interest in that it con tains a photographic r th e th e o f ecord of the work of Institute , maps showing progress u o f P D the soil s rvey the Nelson rovincial istrict , an interesting e s e t S ntomological collection , and an irreplaceable of evres and M eissen ware . The grounds o f the Institute have been laid o u t t o demonstrate the eff ect o f d ifferent fertili z ers o n a number o f different ty pes o f

’ s o f r e a t in te r e s t t o o f oil , and will be found g students agriculture . The library probably contains the most complete collection o f e a A ntomologic l literature to be found in ustralasia .

H F T . . EASTER IELD .

G A L S A K S P S L A A G L . EO O IC N OTE ON B N ENIN U , C NTERBURY

The oldest rocks of Banks Peninsula are slates a n d greywackes ’ e G e b b ie s P o f L t H o xposed near ass at the head y telton arb ur , and h covering them are rhyolites with dykes of pitc stone . The great m n h a s t u o f ass of the peni sula , however , been buil p chiefly a ndesites and basalts poured forth from the two great craters o f A S o f L . yttelton and karoa ubordinate later eruptions , also andes ite s a n d H basalts , took place from Mount erbert the highest o f L e levation the mountain complex , lying to the south of yttelton H u arbo r . The whole area suffered from exte nsive stream - erosion when h e t land was higher , but subsequently depression set in , and the combined effect o f these two agencies on the complex volcanic mass A n i s responsible for the dominant landscape features . impressive view of A karoa H arbour is obtained from the h illtop h d f t e great caldera lies below , its entrance guar ed by giant cli fs ,

- 00 o n u s . rising sheer 5 ft . the so thern ide The stream enlarged d a h h ollow with its rowned v lleys is ten miles in lengt , and into the — c entre stretches th e small peninsula of On a w e noted historically a s the scene o f the massacre of S outh Island Maoris by the ‘ R a u a r a h a conquering chief Te p , but interesting geologically for h n o f o f t e prese ce a mass syenite and gabbro at its extremity , the o nly occurrence o f pluto n ic rocks in the district .

42

S i n . s o t b i to attract attention Cook trait , as is well known , a arr er for North Isla nd plants ; b u t there is a considerable number of such i h a o u t spec es whic become rarer as we go south , and fin lly dwindle P is h th e — at Banks eninsula . It t us southern limit o n the east — c - Rh o a l o s l is s a id a oast , at least for the nikau palm ( p ty p ) , the karaka

o r n o ca r u s l a e vi a ta - H e d ca r a d e n ta ta th e (C y p g ) , the pigeon berry ( y y ) , A l e ctr o n e xce l s u m a n d titoki ( y ) , about a dozen other species .

- Unfortunately , however , the forest which once clothed two thirds o f the peninsula from summ it to ba se has been nearly completely t n o w if u s e e des royed , and it is becoming increasingly d fic lt to th n o n e any i g of its original glory . There is , indeed , only spot left t a xa d c a n i s where the lower forest be seen in t primeval beauty . A n easy motor run of thir ty miles from Christch urch over level roads

’ ‘ P y a r e will take the visitor to rice s Valle , where there a few acres o f i H u magn ficent forest in good preservation . ere will be fo nd huge s o f s d m pecimens black and white pine , with a con i erable ad ixture f m a a a o . P o d o c r u s s ic t totara The black pine ( atai , p p ) is easily z recogni ed by its brownish black bark , which is hammer marked

i . e d c . u 2 . ( , covered with circ lar patches about in in iameter , whi h h I t s suggest that it a s been repeated ly struck by a heavy hammer) . i n in s a d . trunk tall and straight , often more than 3 ft . diameter

h - n d a cr d io id e s The w ite pi e (kahikatea , P . y ) is usually more tapering ,

with rougher , greyer bark , and with even more Characteristic

- P to ta r a hammer markings than the matai . The totara ( . ) becomes m Or e a s w e n s much common asce d through the forest , and is ea ily recognized by the long strips of pale - brown bark h an ging from a t h runk which is more massive even t an in the other species , often a o f f h t . re ching a diameter 5 , t ough the tree is usually not so tall o r i o f as the black white pine . Many other spec es of trees are , course , in h d z d f f to be found t is forest , together with a o en or two i erent kinds o f h o r h R u b u s s rubs and perhaps eight ten lianes , amongst whic ci s s o id e s its (a lawyer , well marked by yellow prickles) here reaches a n unusual size , climbing to the tops of the tallest trees .

ta xa d o n e n I n s u l a Though this forest was dominant the p , there

are remnants near A karoa o f what was probably an earlier forest . On the seaward a n d eastward side o f the A karoa hills there has o f i stretched at one time , near the summit the h lls , a beech forest N o th o a u s u s ca i consisting chiefly of f g f , but conta ning also a number N u s ca d . of curious variant forms , possibly hybri s between f and ‘ N S o l a n d r i N cl i o r ti o id e s . or . fi , of both which latter species a few r t more o r less typical specimens a e to be found . This beech fores o f h a s is special interest because of its isolation , and because it apparently been driven seaward by the stronger a n d more a ggressive ta xa d a n d a th e o f forest , would , even perh ps without intervention

h x . man , ave become e tinct in a few thousand years It still contains a in pla ces some very fi n e stands o f the m a gnificent N o th ofa gu s fu s c . th e In the centre of the peninsula , on bald crests of the highest hills , is to be found a somewhat unexpected formation of subalpine H H o n plants . This is most easily reached from the illtop otel , A L A o f h the karoa ittle River Road . Climb two ours from here o f S will bring the tourist to the summit Mount inclair , where he wil l find w hen he comes above the bush lin e of mountain totara and 43 ,

cedar (Lib o ce d r u s ) an assemblage o f plants containing such subalpine forms as Om i s ia m a cr opli yl l a Ve r o n ica L ya l l i Ra o u l i a l a bm Ra o u l i a s u b s e r i ce a Ol e a r ia c m bi o l ia D r a e ries D i e n b a ch ii g , , y f , p fi , Or e o m w li is a n d ico l a E u li m s ia ze l a i zd ica E il o biu m and , more rarely , y , p , p

/ m a m o u s . p , and various grasses , several of considerable rarity P s ’ D Banks eninsula belong to Cockayne s Eastern Botanical istrict , but its vegetation is sufficiently distinctive to constitute it a well

- i defined sub distr ct . It is to be regarded rather as an outlier of the K aikoura coastal region than o f Otago its affinities are northern h rat er than southern . L G R . M . AIN .

A S C NTERBURY MU EUM .

D r H 1 8 1 . 6 The Canterbury Museum was founded by von . aast in , f o f D 1 88 L and he held the o fice irector till his death in 7 . argely t o o f owing his energy and enthusiasm , and to the use he made his finds o f m o a - bones f o r the purpose o f ”exchange the collection w developed rapidly, and the Museum gained a idespread reputation n throughout the scientific world . This collectio was subsequently o n H f o f arranged scientific lines by Captain utton , who held the o fice 1 8 2 t o 1 0 t w o Curator from 9 9 5. These distinguished scientific men laid the fou n dations o n which the subsequent development o f the institution is based . o f o f D in o m i s The chief feature interest is the collection remains , which includes the greater part o f the m o a material obtained from G K E n fie l d n lenmark , apua , and , as well as represe tative material from t o tw o other places . Owing the fact that the Curators mentioned o f above were primarily geologists , the geological section the Museum has been strongly developed , and it includes thoroughly representa tive mineral , petrological , and palaeontological collections from New

Zealand and from foreign countries , there being a good assemblage o f New Zealand Tertiary fossils , including many types . Other depart o f ments the Museum have , however , received adequate attention . A speci al feature has been made o f the New Zealand natural history b collection , notably the irds . The insect material includes the Fereday n o f L a s o f collectio epidoptera , well as representatives the groups A H . worked over by Captain utton , including many of his types noteworthy exhibit is the skeleton o f the Okarito whale (B a l a e n opte m s ibb a l d i ) , which till quite recently was the largest in any museum in

‘

o f . the world . This was obtained through the energy Mr . Edgar F S f o . . tead during the curatorship Mr . Edgar R Waite e r o f Th re is a ve y good collection ethnological material , especially P that from the acific islands . The Maori collection is small , but includes several articles o f exceptional interest ; and the Moriori material is probably the best in the country , and includes at least two collections made in the early days by residents at the Chatham

' S ir vo n H Islands . The herbarium , founded by Julius aast , and con o f o f taining many his specimens , comprises a fairly complete series

New Zealand plants . S G R . PEI HT .

45

TH E S H A L PS OUT ERN .

The S outhern A lps are usually considered t o extend from Mount A o f L o f spiring ft ) , west ake Wanaka , to about the head the G o f w . n rey River , in north Westland The mountains ester Otago , d s o however , should be include in the alpine system ; and , far from t m n er inati g in north Westland , the range continues north eastward through Nelson and Marlborough to the southern shore of Cook S o f G th e trait . North the rey River the range is known first as S St A a penser Mountains , next as the . rnaud Mount ins , and then , o f f o r n although still considerable height , is ma y miles without a d efinite geographical name . ' o f O w rth E a r n s l a w 2 00 an d The mountains western tago , (9 ft . ) Tu t o k o o f n e ft . ) as their highest points , form a congeries ra g s s o f h eparated by deep valleys , some w ich are occupied by lakes , and o fi o r d s o f s e a o w e i thers , the , by the waters the . They seem to the r present height to simple uplift rather than t o the operation cf folding t o forces , and are therefore to be regarded as belonging a block mountain system . From Mount A spiring northwards the S outhern A lps appear o n t h e western side as a definite , deeply dissected , but unbroken range , ' — o f dropping steeply to the moraine covered lowlands Westland . On the eastern side , broken into somewhat irregular ranges by the river &c P valleys , . , they extend many miles towards the Canterbury lain .

G o f - reywackes and argillites Trias jura age , strongly but irregularly a n d th e o f folded clearly much faulted , form almost whole the Canter

‘ o f bury moun tains . West the main divide these rocks gradually pass l into schistose greywackes and phyllites , and fina ly into closely folded

- o n - - o r a t o mica schists , the whole striking north north east , somewh t t h e o f o f x n west the trend the range . On the e treme western margi o f A n r e re the lps there is some g eiss , which , like the schists , may p s S ent highly metamorphosed sedimentary rocks . eparated from the A a n d o n e lps proper from another by deep valleys , several mountains ,

o r . formed wholly mainly of granite , overlook the Westland lowlands H H ‘ H x S A ochstetter , aast , and utton e plain the outhern lps as a

- n o f folded mountain range , forming a huge geanticli al , which only t h e r easte n half has been preserved . The western half , according to H o f d o w n f a u l t e d ochstetter , is buried in the depth the main ) , o r t o H v n . , according utto , has been remo ed by erosion The geological ‘ s tudies o f recent years show that the western side of the S outhern A lps is bounded by a great fault , and that , as it now stands , the

- range is an uplifted block , tilted slightly south eastward , and probably s n o t omewhat , but greatly , modified in structure by a compressive

- force acting from the south east . The writer thinks that uplift o ccurred in the Pliocene and perhaps also in early Tertiary times .

' The folding o f the rocks is conceived as belonging mainly to an earlier S o r . p eriod , probably the late Jurassic early Cretaceous The penser St A S and . rnaud mountains have the same structure as the outhern A lps , and , as previously indicated , are essentially one and the same range . A A mong the higher alpine peaks are the following . Mount spiring

1 2 . . ft . Mount Cook ( , 349 ft Mount Tasman ft Mount 46

e Malte Brun , Mount de la B che , and several others in the Mount Cook r . A group , all over ft Farthe north are Mount dams , Mount L h 8 6 6 a nd ambert , Mount Evans Mount W itcombe ( , 5 ft . o 8 0 00 S others ver , ft . high . till farther north the alpine range is 0 00 S under 7 , ft . in height , but several mountains in the penser Range f t o f 000 . reach heights over 7 , , the highest being Mount Franklin , S o f s i n ft . ome the branch range Canterbury reach heights o f f t a n d in A . , , the case of Mount rrowsmith over a thousand feet more . S A Owing to the heavy snowfall , the glaciers of the outhern lps , in proportion to the heights o f the mountains a n d the size o f the s n o w fi e l d s u t o , are nusually large , and , moreover , descend low levels . o n H Thus the eastern side the Tasman , Mueller , and ooker glaciers f t f t have their terminal faces at . , . , and ft . above

- S F o x G 6 2 0 f t sea level . On the western ide the lacier descends to . ,

' th e F r a n z r and J osef , as elsewhe e described under a special heading ,

- t . o 69 2 ft . above sea level P G . . G MOR AN .

G L A CI E R SJ A N D G L A CIA TION I N TH E MOUNT COOK D S I TRICT .

H H b e a u tif u l l s itu a t e d H e The ermitage otel , y in the ooker Vall y , G close to the terminal moraine of the Mueller lacier (fig . and t almost at the base of Moun Cook itself , is approached by a good ’ e road , and is thus within an easy day s j ourn y of Timaru by service H S V . A motor cars ere , in the very heart of the outhern lps , the isitor ay u h a m , witho t leaving the otel , he r the boom of avalanches and n n enj oyunrivalled mou tai scenery . N ev e fields and hanging glaciers

o n th e - are all around , and the evening glow snow capped summit o f H m v Mount Cook , as seen from the er itage , is a sight no tra eller Z l n d visiting New é a a should miss . A walk up the H ooker Valley by the side of the glacier to the H H u t f ooker a fords a fine view of Mount Cook at close quarters , o f H i and the glaciated trough of the ooker Valley , with hang ng r H tributary valleys and truncated spurs . The su face o f the ooker

G a . o n a o f l cier , as in the case of all the glaciers the e stern side the S h A l main divide of the out ern ps , is heavily covered with moraine . The track to the H ooker H u t passes along a ridge o f stranded lateral

moraine f o r a considerable distance . A walk o r ride of several hours from the H ermitage brings o n e H u t o f to the Ball , j ust below the j unction the Ball and Tasman i o c k o f glaciers , and situated between the y wall the Tasman Valley and a high ridge o f stranded lateral moraine bordering th e great o f Tasman G lacier . From this point a short walk over the ice the G e i Tasman lacier (clear of moraine from this to the head , xcept ng

- t H

medial ridges) brings into view the magnificent ice fall ‘ o the och

G . stetter lacier , which descends from Mount Cook It is necessary H u t to spend a night at the Ball . This excursion may be extended up the Tasman Valley as far a s H u t the Malte Brun , which is reached by walking about eight miles 47

— ’ F I G . 2 0 . G o f t h e S o o G e o l o o N e w laciers uthern Alps . (Fr m Marshall s gy f Z e a l a n d . )

1 . o c h e e H tt r o m e . . a l a m a u n S M B r u n . Mo u n t n . 1 2 . Mo to ke . st D 5 te . 9 T s t s

2 . l d B e a u m n e e o t . 6 . o u n l a B c h . 1 . Mo u n t o o k 1 . Mo u n t e f to n . E i M t d e e e 0 C . 3 S

. u n G r n Mo t e e . Mo u n t a n r 1 1 . Mo u n t H ck . 1 . Mo u n S e a l e . 3 7 H id i ge . i s 4 t y

. Mo u n D a r wm . 8 M u n t a a t 4 t . o H s . 48

’ t u n up the glacier . The Mal e Brun H t stands o a bench o n the eastern o f is é é side the glacier , and from it a splendid view obtained of the n v field at the head o f the Tasman ; and o f the surrounding peaks and u hanging glaciers . If a stay is made at Malte Brun H t it may be a s H D used a base for an expedition to the ochstetter ome , on the i G ma n divide , at the head of the Tasman lacier . h H c a n Numerous s ort trips from the ermitage be arranged , and o n experienced m u taineers have the choice of many fine climbs . The road from Tim aru (via Fairlie) to the H e r mitage passes u P s thro gh the Mackenzie lain , and thence up the Ta man Valley . The Mackenzie Plain occupies a large% tectonic depression lying between the ma in range of the S outhern A lps and an outlying complex o f f faulted blocks . The depression is filled in with alluvium to orm

- b r y . e a basin plain , traversed the rive s of the Waitaki system Ther in t e r fi n e r in o f th e m o n is considerable g g alluviu with glacial m rai es . — P — The large lakes in the basin Tekapo , ukaki , and Ohau are held i up by dams of term nal moraine in valleys enlarged by glaciation . l I t is clear that the g aciers , nestling now close to the main divide , r were at one time eno mously extended . Very striking evidence of o f G is the great former extension the Tasman lacier , for example , seen in the presence o f prominent terraces of stranded lateral moraine o f L P high on the sides the Tasman Valley , overlooking ake ukaki and the rapidly growing delta at the head o f the lake . There are also hangin g valleys . That the modern glaciers are still corrading is evidenced by the 8 0 milky appearance of the rivers that flow from them . fine is the rock - flo u r they carry that mu ch remains in suspension even after the water h a s passed through the large lakes Pukaki and Tekapo . A C . . COTTON .

E L - E K TH P A NT L IFE IN TH VICIN I TY OF MOUNT COO . A rapid acquaintance with the floristic and ecological characters o f the New Zealand high - mountain plants can be gained with far greater ease in the confines of the Mou n t Cook National Park than

to - anywhere else in New Zealand . Usually visit the high mountain plant associations entails an arduous climb o f several hours . From H is the ermitage , on the contrary , only a few yards away there h primitive subalpine scrub , w ile a leisurely walk of two or three miles , o r s less , without any climbing , enables a large percentage of the plant to be seen in their primeval habitats . There are certainly some c a n which never descend into the valleys , but nearly all such be reached by the excellent track leading to above the shrub - line o n S the ealey Range . The total number o f species of pteridophytes and spermophytes 80 h t o in the area under consideration is about 3 , w ich belong f w 0 . o 54 families and 1 4 6 genera . This is about 4 per cent the hole

- o f New Zealand high mountain flora , many species of which are local distribution , while others are restricted to localities much drier than that of Mount Cook . Most of the genera of the Mount Cook flo r u l a i t e n o r contain few species , the follow ng alone having each

V H t r — f . . e c o i o vigorous and abundant the whipcord form , and so characteristic o f the Fiord and S outh Otago Botanical D istricts— and V B u ch a n a n i l . have here apparently their northern imits . A nother b u t Ol e a a shrub characteristic of the south , here also abundant , is r i h a ta m o s c . In fact , the area occupies a rather critical position , situated as it is at the eastern limit reached by the heavy westerly o f rain , and not very far from the southern limit the botanical i — — hi d strict the Western to w ch it belongs . In hollows o n the mountain s the snow often lies long into the u summer , when the steeper gro nd adj acent has been for many weeks S — c o n S — clear . uch hollows g , the ealey Range have a special

F I G 2 2 — R a o u li a e xim ia o f d . . The vegetable sheep ( ) , a plant the aisy o m o o n o o o To r l e s s e family f r ing hard cushi ns r cky gr und , M unt R C ange , anterbury .

e l a ta vegetation consisting o f a thick mat of D a n th o n i a o r e o pkil a var . A s te li a m o n ti co l a (not known elsewhere) , (a distinct species not yet M o n r o i A ci h l l a A . described) , and a species of p y related to but much A t - larger . a higher altitude similar hollows are the growing place o f Ce l m is ia H e cto r i . , which is absent on the drier ground ’ The small piece o f forest (G overnor s Bush) near - the H ermitage — N cl i o r ti o id e s i . has N o th ofa gu s M e n zie s i as its sole tall tree not fi , l l o w a s one might expect . The association gradua ly changes into P h l l o cl a d n s a l i n u s its to forest of y p , which in turn gives place subalpine scrub much a s already described but containing many more species .

L . COCKAYNE . SI

TH E A S G L A S L A FR NZ J O EF CI ER , WE T ND .

z G th e The Fran J osef lacier , remarkable for low altitude of its a n , o S A terminal face is situ ted the western side of the outhern lps ,

a little over sixty miles as the crow flies south - west of H okitika , y h and not man miles nort of Mount Cook . The fro n t of the glacier ° ’ ° ' ” lies approximately in latitude 43 2 6 south and longitude 1 70 1 1 3 0

G - east of reenwich . It is now easily reached by motor coach from

- - H five - okitika (road distance ninety miles) , or from the . rail head at

fi - o f H Ross , fteen miles south west okitika . The terminal face of the Fran z J osef G lacier is approximately

- 6 2 . 1 0 s e a 9 ft (as determined in 9 9 ) above level , and about eleven

- . f Th e miles from the sea coast It has a width of .about hal a mile . h d o f G S nominal ea the glacier , at raham addle , seven miles and a half

- f t . to the south east , has an elevation of , but neighbouring

fi F 1 G 2 — . . o G I L 3 The Franz J sef lacier.

n l a e peaks , Mou t de B che and Minaret Peaks , rise to heights of over

ft . A bout half - way from G raham S ad dle to the terminal face th e feeding s n o w fie l d s converge in order t o enter a c o m pa r a tive l v H G narrow valley . ere is the reat Icefall , and thence down wards th e upper surface o f the glacier is everywhere less tha n

h - f u h ic e t ree q uarters o a mile wide . The low altit de to w ich the descends may be attributed to the narrowness o f the contain ing A s m valley and its steep grade . determined by observations ade 1 0 8 u in 9 , the s rface of the glacier , towards the centre of the valley, f o 2 . but near the terminal face , moves at the rate about ft per day in H summer . igher up , towards the icefall , the motion is no doubt

- m .th e r . . o e rapid In winter , motion is presumably slower 52

ic e - th e s o The front at present time , far as the writer retreating . Twelve to fourteen years a go there was a c o f o r advance , but a long time previous to that the glacier t u y . . . th e retreating , probably almost con in ousl J M Bell estimates retrogression in quite recent times (during the last 1 50 years) at 1 c a n 4 chains , and there be little doubt that on the whole th e glacier will conti n ue to lose ground during the next few hundred years . The almost complete absence of moraine o n the surface of th e z G a its Fran Josef lacier , especially ne r the terminal face , allows beauties to be seen to full advantage . There are innumerabl e 01 ° — pinnacles seracs and irregular cavities in the much broken ice , s o it f that travel over is di ficult and in many places impossible . A z G G few miles south of the Fran J osef lacier is the Fox lacier , . b u t n less visited and possibly less beautiful , havi g its terminal — 62 0 - face at a still lower altitude namely , ft . above sea level .

P G RG N . . MO A .

TH E G A A TH E A S F G L A VE ET TION NE R FR NZ J O E CI ER .

The special botanical interest which the immediate vicinity o f z G f z the Fran J osef lacier a fords lies in the plant coloni ation , now ic e ' in th e in progress , of ground left bare by th e retreating , and f s o a 6 2 e fect of a large glacier at low an ltitude (terminal face , 9 ft . ) in altering the altitudinal distribution of certain high - mountai n species . On the eastern side of the glacier a fairly wide belt of ice - worn rock extends from the m argin of th e ic e to the well - established A t scrub above . a few yards distance from the ice colonizing com menees with the establishment of patches o f the moss Rh a co rn itr in rri d o D a m li io n . sy p ecaying below , the moss r p idly forms raw humus

- m Th e suitable f o r seed ger ination . rock itself (a quartzose schist) a is marked by many depressions , grooves , and cr cks , which also , v h in aded by the moss , are the special places w ere seeds germinate P when brought by wind or water from the scrub or forest . lants at various stages of development are fairly frequent , the advantage of ultimate survival , where several grow together , being all in

fi - o f te r id o favour o f the r s t comers . More than thirty species p ph yt e s and spermophy tes take part in the invasion . The following list includes th e most important species : Hym e n ophyl l u m m u l tifid n m i L co o d im n va r ii n n A r o s ti s ( grows on solid rock and forms so l) , y p , g

- S clzo e n i i s a n ci o r u s il o s a P o a n o o a e ze l a n d i a e P . Co cka n i a n a fl p , , y , p a l B a r i n a a u tn in n a l e Ca r m ich a e l i a r a n d i o r a (where w ter ies) , , g fl , Co r a r i a a r in e n to s a M e tr o s id e r o s l i i cid a G u n n e r a a lb o ca r a G a u l th e r ia i s , , p , L a l lii u a n a V. r u e s tr is D r a c o ii l l n rn Zo n i o l i n ni e r o n ica s b l i , , p , p y g f , V , p y i o l i a O a r b o r e s ce n s a e a il ic . o r o s m a r i i o s a Ol e a r i a a vi ce n n i o l i O . , C p g , f , f , i 0 o l e n s o . and . C Between the first arrival o f the plants and their ultimate union into scrub there is a long period , but this is greatly shortened if i even a thin layer o f m oraine is left on the rock by the retreating c e . 53

h Farther back from t e rock which is being invaded is a . b road u belt of tall scr b with the shrubs mentioned above , together with.

- A s l e n in rn b u l bi e r i i n i P o l s tich n ni various rain forest species p f , y ve s titu rn a r o d e tu s s e r r a tu s W e in m a n n i a r a ce m o s a M e l i c tu s r a in i , C p , , y o r n s fl , and other mesophytes . There is also a good deal of M e tr o s id e r o s c i d a s o th e n , that scrub will eve tually become forest o f th e same character as that forming the next belt of vegetation . A good many species usually confined to the subalpine belt descend ic e w 1 00 neai the to ithin about , 5 ft . altitude , or even much less : A r o s tis D e r i P o a n o va e 7 e l a n d ia e The following are examples g y , , G e n rn a r o i o r n in A n i s o to rn e H a a s tii D r a co h l l m n K i r ki D T ve r s i . r a ii p fl , , p y , e r o n i ca s u a l in a Zi n i o l ia o r o s m a s e r r i i l a ta Ce b V. l m is ia co r ia ce a V p , f , C p , , C b e l l id i o id e s Ol e a r i a o l e n s o i e u co e n e s r a n d ce . i s , C , and L g g p .

Co c Y N E L . .

TH E G L G TH E D U D D S EO O Y OF NE IN I TRICT .

Our present detailed knowledge o f the distribution of igneous rocks in the D unedin district is due almost entirely to the work o f

D r n . . Marshall and his stude ts . Briefly , the region consists of a series

o f o n - Tertiary sediments resting the planed surface of mica schists . x On the eroded surface of these the volcanic comple was built up . The mica - schists are probably the altered form o f late Palaeo z oic

o r early Mesozoic sediments . The immediately overlying beds are o f h n e gritty sandstones with seams exploitable g it , which , traced n D r e i to regions immediately adj acent to the unedin district , a seen to be covered by beds which in two o r three localities have been o f found to be fossiliferous . In one these places is a limestone with fragments of bivalve shells and belemnites which is probably o f

late Cretaceous age , while in another , recently found by Fyfe , the

' sandstone contains early Eocene molluscs . These are followed b y

glauconitic mudstones , loose sands , marls with Oligocene d Foraminifera , shark , fish , and penguin bones , a thin ban of green a n d o f sand , a thick series loosely cemented calcareous sandstones t e r e b r a t u l id s h h with , ec inoids , and a few molluscs , w ich pass up into h l impure limestones wit a more abundant mo luscan fauna , shown b o f m recently y Finlay to be approxi ately Miocene age . The earlier portions of the volcanic rocks are exposed in the o f D c o m southern , western , and eastern portion the unedin igneous o f o f plex . They consist chiefly a series dolerite and basalt flows t a n d wi h some trachyte in the east , a minor amount of tinguaite and A o f trachydolerite . succession twenty six such flows is exposed in i H . the Otago North ead The later volcanic rocks form ng the west ,

- o f o f north west , and central portion the region consist more largely h x trachydolerite and p onolite . E tensive explosions occurred near Port P Chalmers and ortobello , resulting in the formation of large necks T . h e filled with breccia , from which radiate a series of tinguaite dykes extent to which hypabyssal bodies such as laccolites o r sills are asso

- c ia t e d with the above mentioned lavas is not yet quite clear . Between y o f s o successive flows there may have been ver short intervals time , that the upper flow may rest on the unweathered scoria o f the first ; 54 o r there may elapse a considerable interval w ith deep erosion and some

s o - f sedimentation , that between the flows are stratified leaf bearing tu f beds and even conglomerates . Though of small thickness generally , ’ f 1 00 in o . G such deposits rise to a thickness ft Fraser s ully , imme

d ia t e l o f D . ar e y west unedin Rarely carbonaceous bed s seen , and a

o f o il - A o f - fl w s in gle stratum shale is known . series small basalt o s poured out from scattered vents after the older volcanic rocks o f the region had been greatly eroded were the latest products of igneous a ctivity . tw o The region now reached a mature state of erosion . The m ain valleys draining the volcanic hills ran in opposite directions , w their h eads separated by a l o divide . The region subsided beneath s e a the , the minor valleys all became deep embayments , and the m s o - ain divide was flooded over , that a long through chan nel was — H formed the present Otago arbour , the southern opening of which w a s cl osed by the formation of the sandspit tying the Taieri Peninsula S D S t K a . to the mainland , where outh unedin and . ilda now st nd S andbars also have very nearly closed entrances to th e outer or f oceanward series o f drowned embayments . The e fects of a later minor uplift can be recognized locally in the presence of raised

- V l - K a iko r a i l beaches and of two cycle , a ley forms seen in the Va ley

o f D n . ( for example) , west u edin

W . N . BENSON .

TH E L A D D F OR OF UNE IN .

Th e e a r l ie s t settlers found the D unedin district bush - clad from ’ H the water s edge almost to the summits of the highest hills . uman n ecessity has led to the clearing - away of much o f this primeval c n overing , but a wise foresight has set apart as a reserve a umber th e of forest remnants , some even within city . In these more or ' l e s s u n m o l e s t e d areas there has been preserved almost every species o f the primitive vegetation . Th t e grea variety of plant stations , resulting from an altitudinal range of ft . and a somewhat complex topography , is well r eflected in the d iversity and number of species represented in the

- a district . Within a ten mile r dius there may be gathered over five hundred species o f flo w e r in g- plants a n d a still larger number o f

c . ryptograms , exclusive of naturalized and other introduced species This list is inclusive of seventy - five ferns a n d one hundred and fifty

m . a 0 . arine algae Of the total assembl ge , close on 9 per cent still f e xists in the area bounded by the visible horizon o the city. The great maj ority of the indigenous species are endemic , but the s o f ame cannot be said the genera , which are for the most part n m A . ustralian also Indeed , o ly nine ende ic genera are met with in D n the neighbourh ood o f u edin . A s y elsewhere , the ph siognomy of the forest is sombre , but far from unattractive . The visitor is struck as much by the infinite variety in the shades and hues o f green o f the New Zealand bush a s he is by th e absence of green in the native - grass lands locally f H 85 r o n 0. epresented Flagsta f , Chain ills , Conspicuous blossoms are t h e x o f e ception rather than the rule , most the flowers being small 55

t h and unisexual either in struc ure or in function . W ere not wholly n n a r e u gree , the domi ant colours white , yellow , and bl e , the only local plant h aving r e d flowers being the beautiful scarlet mistletoe (E lytr a n th e Co l e n s o i) ; b u t the resplendent golden blossoms of the

S o h o r a m i cr o h l l a - h kowhai ( p p y ) , the exquisite pure w ite flowers of

- C i n d ivis a o r o f the bush clematis ( . ) , the myriad blooms the lacebark H o h e r i a a n u s ti o li a L e to s e r n i i n n Ru b n s ( g f ) , manuka ( p p ) , and lawyer ( a u s tr a l is ) , lend a charm to the landscape in their respective flowering

. seasons 0 vi The sitor with little time at his disposal , and wishing to make

fi r s t - h t o a and acquaintance with the native plants , is recommended

t m - visit the Town Bel ; but , as the larger ti ber trees and a consider able portion of the undergrowth have been removed , a much better though slightly more distant locality would be th e forest - clad slopes f f S H o a . Fl gsta f or wampy ill Indeed , of all the trips available , none is more comprehensive than that which follows the L eith to it s o n S w a m H A L . . S source py ill good road leads right to the eith addle , th e and from this point final ascent is both easy and interesting . In a distance of seven miles many distinct ecological formations s f th e will be seen , each with its distinctive specie , thus a fording visitor an excellent Opportu n ity to make a rapid survey of the local fl r u l o a .

OF L FLORA EITH VALLEY .

V The first trees to attract attention after turning into V o o d h a u gh

a m G S - o n F e xco r tica ta V lley fro eorge treet are the tree fuchsia or k ini ( . )

- - G r is e li n ia l itto r a l is and the dark green , glossy leaved broadleaf , ( ) f growing near the foot of the cli fs on the left , and festooned with the a M n e zl e n b e cki a a a tr a l is scr mbling vine ( / s ) . On the opposite side of N o ih o a n a x o l e n s o i i r the valley the common panax ( p C ) , w th even darke S r foliage than the broadleaf , is equally conspicuous . hortly afte passing the paper - m ill s the we ll - known kowhai (S op/ mm rn icr opliyl l a ) is a conspicuous plant , especially in the flowering season , as , to a

- a H h r i a a n u s ti o l a o e i . lesser extent , is the narrow le fed lacebark ( g f ) ’ d ta xa d s Beyon the bridge a few minutes walk leads to a clump of , m n y . more com onl , designated pines This clump contains specime s

D a cr i d i n ni cu r e s s i n n ni . of the rimu ( p ) , rendered conspicuous by its d n th e - P o d o ca r u s s ica l a roopi g branchlets of black pine or matai ( p p ) ,

P e r r i i i n e a o f h e - P o ta r a t . t and miro ( . f g ) , and stringy barked totara ( ) , all useful timber - trees formerly occurring here in such numbers as

m P - H P H a . to , suggest the n e of ine tree ill , now shortened to ine ill By the time the L eith Valley School is reached the valley has a narrowed appreciably , and an lmost unbroken stretch of native d verdure is entere , consisting at this point of the trees already o f mentioned and a host smaller trees and shrubs , conspicuous among

t ' - P itto s o r m n which are the beau iful crinkly leaved lemonwood . ( p — e u - c e e r a d i ita ta A f e w ge n i o id e s ) and the 7 9 foliate patete (S k fil g ) .

- H e m ite l ia A r i s to te l ia r a ce m o s a tree ferns (mostly ) , the wineberry ( ) , and

- M e l ic ti i s th e the brittle stemmed mahoe ( y ) are also noticeable , while — reddish tints o f the pepper tree (D r i rnys co l o r a ta ) contrast strongly ’ ’ with all . Nicholl s Creek and then Morrison s Creek are successively passed before a steep ascent leads to a piece of fairly open fla t 56

h land w ere a number of new plants appear , chief of which are the — conical shaped kawaka o r native ced ar (L ib o ce d r u s B id will ii) a n d the ’ N o t/i o a n a x s im l e x small leafed panax ( p p ) . A s S ullivan s dam is appro ach ed the weeping mapau (M yr s zn e d iva r i ca ta ) and the snowb erry G a u l th e r ia b e < o m e ( ) conspicuous members of the association , as are o r o s m a F numerous C p and panax . rom here to the top Co pr o s m a o e ti d is s i in a S f , better and appropriately known as the tinkwood , n a s d appears and becomes the domina t shrub , the rimu , ce ar , and o th o a n a s im l e x a r e N p x p among the trees . A short distance beyond the summit of the L eith S addle a dark

gate and turnstile mark the spot where the bush should be entered .

%

The bed of the creek when reached is followed for some distance , a n d affords an excellent opportunity o f seeing quite the maj ority of the fern s of the district a s well a s a n u mber of the less common e P a n a x E d e r l e i k . . y o a ko E l o e o ca r u s trees , such , g , as g and the p ( p a i ts l n H o o ke r i n ) . The suba pine shrub zone is entered o leaving th e

- Ol e a r i a il ici o l ia h bush , and the shrub daisy ( f ) ere occurs in large u Co r ia r i a numbers , along with three varieties of t tu ( ) , a speedwell b i ixi o li a a s s in i a G a u l th e r i a &c e r o n i ca . ( V f ) , C , , A very noticeable plant

in this z one is the S paniard or spear - grass (A c iphyl l a Co l e n s o i) - a h member of t e carrot family . o f n A short stretch grassla d containing numerous orchids , heaths ,

- a s and heath like plants , well as grasses , leads to the su mmit , where will be found the Sphagnum swamp that ga ve rise to the n ame H H S . wampy ill ere , unattached to any substratum of soil , are several

- Or e o s t l id i n m & c . orchids , buttercups , cushion plants y ) , , while nea r - b y m a y be seen th e only local exa mples of the diva ricatin g alpine A r is to te l i a r u tico s a th e wineberry ( f ) , contrasting strongly with large

- leafed species of the low level forest . If one has time and energy for a second excursion Maungatua h ft . ) is well worth a visit , if for no other reason t an that upon it may be gathered some forty - seven plants not met with nearer to

D s ix o u r o f - u nedin . On the summit of seven species grass trees D r a co h l l u m u c e l m is ia s ( p y ) are fo nd , five of our seven or mountain

’

daisies , two of three gentians , seven sedges , four grasses , two speed Ra n u n cu l u s r a cili e s E u h r a s i a wells , a buttercup ( g p ) , an eyebright ( p S te ll a r i a r a il e n ta A D e r i c . y ) , a chickweed ( g ) , and sundry others copy o f o th e i the catal gue of the plants of d strict , prepared by the ’ ' D a n d th e unedin Naturalists Field Club , procurable either from honora ry secretary o f that club or of the Otago Instit u te (price will be fou n d a useful adj unct on such excursions as are indicated h n i n t ese otes .

W . MARTIN .

R TH E OTA G O UNIVE S ITY MUS EUM . The foundation of the present collections o f the Museum of the D r H S ir University o f Otago was laid by . ector (afterwards J ames

H - ector , who organized a large and excellent natural history 8 collection f o r the New Zealand Exhibition held in D unedin in 1 65. th e This material formed basis of the present Museum collections , n o t 1 8 o f . but it was until 77 that the central block the present buildings

58

- G break into such fossiliferous rocks in north eastern Otago . The e o logical S urvey and the maj ority of other geologists have held that the

schists are ancient , and must be separated by obscure unconformities D r . h . a h z from these fossiliferous rocks Marsh ll has , owever , emp asi ed the complete absence of any material derived from the schists in the a n a a r e n t a s s a e adj acent greywackes , and has described in detail pp p g

w - between the unaltered grey acke and the mica schist , traced along fl h s e c tio r . t e a a line of in the southern ank of nticline namely , from L H . e Balclutha to awrence , a distance of about twelve miles concludes , n o t f however , that the schistose structure is a direct mechanical e fect o f pressure , there being little sign of crushing or strain , but is rather f h the e fect of chemical action stimulated by mechanical pressure , w ich

has caused the regular orientation of the second ary crystal - grains a n d y h developed , especiall of the flakes of mica w ich replace the alkali

- . r a feldspar On the other hand , the longe diameter of the qu rtz grains is t o generally perpendicular the plane of schistosity .

- In other regions , particularly in north western Otago , though it has been asserted that there is an observable transition of greywacke into schist , this is not supported as yet by such detailed observations , and in places there seems , instead , to be a rather sharp break between them , s o sharp that it can be detected by differences in the topography . ’ D r In supporting . Marshall s general views as to the age of the schists , the writer h a s suggested a working hypothesis of the structure of the apparent anticline , which may also be found to explain the passage , u n m e t a sometimes gradual and sometimes very sharp , between the

- is m o r ph o s e d and metamorphosed rock types . In this it suggested o f that the anticline is not simple , but is an arched packet — o f recumbent Sheet folds , the schistose structures which were de v l d b z h o f e o p e . y recrystalli ation during folding under the weig t the overlying folds . The upper sheets would therefore be noticeably less

S - metamorphosed . ubsequent block faulting would bring the less meta m o r ph o s e d higher sheets down to the level of the more metamorphosed f l lower sheets . Out of this mosaic of di ferentially moved b ocks the

th e m , general peneplain was , cut at commence ent of the Tertiary times and erosion foll owing the later post - Tertiary ( P) crust - movements (which moved diversely the same series of crust - blocks) has produced topographic forms that vary with the lithological chara cter o f the h o f P blocks , a suggestion w ich incorporates the conclusions rofessor

Cotton concerning the geographic evolution of Centra l Otago . The difficulty in the wa y of testing this hypoth esis is the absence of any readily recognizable sedimentary series within the schists and i n e c e s the adj acent rocks , and much invest gation , therefore , will be sary before it c a n be either accepted or rej ected .

W . N . BENSON . 59

L S L OCA L I TI E S I T OF .

G EOLO G Y .

o a h K H A P hys i gr p y . aipara arbour and other North uckland in lets (drowned river - valleys) L ake Taupo ; Wellington (fault

- e e - l f s . scarps , crush zones , raised beaches , p Muka Muka C i f , B a o f 1 8 S Palliser y (9 ft . uplift 55 q uoted by Lyell and uess ; Marlborough S ounds (drowned river - valleys) K aikoura Mountains ; A A ’ G S outhern lps (see p . rthur s Pass and Otira orge ; Buller River and gorges ; Canterbury rivers (terraces and fans) Central fi o r d s Otago (block mountains) ; , Western Otago (drowned valleys) . G l a ci a ti o n Ph e n o m e n a — L Fiords , Western Otago akes Manapouri , k i u V n ka W a a t V a a . p , , Tekapo and neighbourhood ' — &c Co o k H e r m ita G l a cie r s a . e . Tasm n , (Mount g ) (see p 1 Fra nz J osef (see p . 5 ) Fox (Central Westland) (see p . o l ca n o e s —A : N a u r u h o e P 2 V . ctive g (National ark) (see p . 3 ) D R h P a : u a e u . T rawera ; White Island . ormant p (National ark) A n i Extinct : Mount Egmont ; environs of uckland ; R a g to to . I — D n P i gn e o u s Ro cks u edin (see p . 53) Oamaru Banks en nsula 0 D u n s e e P (see p . 4 ) Mountain , Nelson ( p . Coromandel enin sula . F o s s il ife r o u s L o ca l itie s — Pliocene Wanganui Petane and Ngaru Pa ka u r n i K H . : a roro River ; Motunau Miocene g , aipara arbour ; P : Mount Brown areora Oamaru . Older Tertiary Waihao Forks H P A ampden ; Wangaloa ; Weka ass . Cretaceous : Waipara ; muri f S : P : Blu f ; elwyn Rapids . Jurassic Nugget oint . Triassic Nugget

P P Pe r m o - a : D u n oint Mount otts (plants) . C rboniferous Mountain , ’ L G V ic ia n C S : . O : . L Nelson ilurian ankey s ully , Reefton dQ olling w P ood ; reservation Inlet . G e s e r s a n d Th e r m a l P h e n o m e n a — W h a ka y Rotorua and environs ,

, ; ; . rewarewa , Waimangu (quiescent) Waiotapu Wairakei Taupo ’ n e e — W a Lim e s to Ca v s itomo .

G o d — z - z l . a W ihi (quart mining) Blackwater , near Reefton (quart

n - H mini g) Rimu gold d redge (near okitika) . o a l — H P n D C . untly , ukemiro ; Westport Coal Compa y ( enniston G K S . and Millerton) tate Coal , reymouth aitangata — K a i - n A ir i rn . g . North uckland

W . J . MAR ICK

P S CH IE F A S SE S O F T HE S O U THE RN ALP .

' ’ — - H a r p e r s P a s s Chief pass used by Maoris in olden

H Te r e m a ka u . times . Route via urunui River to River First L crossing of A lps by white man made by this pass in 1 857 (Mr . eonard H arper) . ’ — A r t/zi ir s P a s s W a im a ka r ir i and Beal ey Rivers to Otira T m k u K and e r e a a Rivers . nown to Maoris in former times but

P . seldom used . resent route to West Coast is over this pass ’ B r o wn in g s P a s s - A t head of Wilberforce River (tribu tary o f Rakaia) and leading over into A rahura River . 60

— [M a th i a s P a s s A t head of M a thias River (tributary o f H R akaia) and leading over into okitika River . W h il co r nb e P a s s — A t hea d of R akaia River and l eading H into Whitcombe and okitika Rivers . D e n n is l o u n Pa s s — B y R angitata and H avelock Rivers o P R A . to Bats n Creek , erth River , and Wataroa iver . lpine pass

% S e a l e P a s s — m G d G h G y Fro o ley lacier , at ead of odley R e G a S S a n d P a n d a iver , to J oyc l cier , cone tream , erth Wat roa R A ivers . lpine pass . L e n d e nf e l d l S a d d l e — A t the head of Tasman G lacier

t o h G . W y mper lacier and Wataroa Rivers Alpine pass . ’ G r a h a m s S a d d l e Tasman a n d Rudolf G laciers o a G y H t Fr nz J osef lacier . Used extensivel as a pass from the ermitage t o the Franz J osef . P io n e e r P a s s — A difficult alpine pass leading over to G the Fox lacier . ’ H a r pe r s S a d d l e —From H ooker G lacier to L a Perouse G lacier . Alpine pass . Co pl a n d P a s s — The easiest alpine pass for crossing e ither r I u from east to west o from west to east . sed extensively by to rists n L H o G Co with limited a lpine experie ce . eads from o ker lacier to p n K land a d arangarua Rivers . ’ F yf e s P a s s (about — L eads from the head of the Mueller h R A s . to t e L and sborough iver . lpine pa s H a a s t P a s s — A remarka ble low pass leading from the

L a H . Makarora River , at the head of ake Wan ka , to the aast River f r h e Free from snow except o occa sional falls during t winter . Used a s a stock route .

A T R . T . . FLE CHE

BO T AN Y . The following list gives those localities of botanical interest which a r e accessible from the principal cities and tourist resorts of New Zealand ’ K a u r i F o r e s t — Tr o u n s o n s P (see p . ark (eight miles from K aihu) G reat Barrier Island W a ita ke r e i R ange (fifteen miles from l K A . 2 G A 2 H . uck and , see p ) auri ully , uckland arbour Jl/I ixe d F o r e s t — W a ita ke r e i 2 Range (see p . 2 ) Ngongotaha Moun ’ tain and H ongi s Track (near Rotorua) ; Mamaku (near R otorua) ; ’ M ount H a u h u n ga t a h i (near Waimarino) ; K apiti Island ; Wilton s ’ — h G l - o - H Bus , ollan s Va ley , Wainui mata , and utt Waikanae Road D ’ (in vicinity of Wellington) ; ean s Bush , Christchurch ; Banks P L D eninsula (see p . eith Valley , unedin (see p . Mount ’ ‘ i Ca rg ll ; Catlin s River L ongwood Range S tewart Island . B e e c h F o r e s t — Tongariro National Park ; Mount H a u h u n ga t a h i ; ’ — M G - o - H ount Egmont ollan s Valley , Wainui mata , and utt Waikanae T r l D u n Road ; Mount o e s s e Mount Cook (see p . Mountain ’ N n i L (near elso , rej uvenated forest) Catlin s R ver ; ongwood Range h L VVa ka i u S ead of ake t p track to Milford ound . P o h i i l i i h a w R n i o a to t . a S cr u b . g (see p 61

— S u b a lpi n e a n d A lpi n e Vege ta ti o n Mount Egmont Tongariro

N P . o . ational ark (see p 3 5) Mineral Belt , near Nels n (see p 3 9 ) 8 S H D To r l e s s e . Mount Mount Cook (see p 4 ) wampy ill , near unedin

S . (see p . 54) tewart Island — I M a n r o ve a A H H S n g uckland arbour (near enderson , ta ley Bay ,

D evonport) . — R o to m a h a n a Ot u m o ko kir i W a io H S r i n s e e ta ti o n . o t p g V g ; , near tapu Wairakei Valley , near Taupo .

- Other types of vegetation , such as manuka scrub , tussock grass

- land , sand dunes , swamp , bog , may be seen in several of the localities m entioned . V W . R . B . OLI ER .

T A G RIC U LT U RE AND FORE S RY .

Ru a ku r a F a r m o I n s tr u cti o n H a m il to n — 00 f , . Nearly 9 acres , situated P o n the fringe of the great iako S wamp . The greater part of the A o f farm is now highly developed and equipped . wide range crop n p i g has been practised , but , in keeping with the essentially dairying o f character the district , pasture development and management is now

Th e - S a leading feature . pedigree live stock includes Milking horthorn A D S (with ustralian arbalara blood) and Jersey cattle , outhdown sheep , A a n . d Berkshire pigs flock of crossbred sheep is also run . The other o f t branches the es ablishment are the poultry section , the apiary , and z the horticultural section , including an orchard of considerable si e . R u a k u r a is the principal farm instructional instituti o n of the New D ’ Zealand epartment of A griculture . W e r a r o a e n tr a l D e ve l o m e n t F a r m L e vin — On 0 C p , 75 acres of land c onverted from heavy forest . The neighbourhood is ideal dairying c ountry , and the farm has developed on lines consistent with the a e requirements of that industry . Noted herds r Friesian (blending D utch and A merican blood) and Red Poll . Berkshire pigs and Romney c ross sheep are kept . Other G overnmental experimental stations are situated at Mou h K i ma aki (general farming) and Te auwhata (fruit and v ticulture) . L i n co l n A r i cu l tu r a l o l l e e n e a r h r i s tch u r ch — Tw o 800 g C g , C farms , and

L - % acres . ive stock includes horses , cattle , sheep , and pigs . Most a - - S ttention is directed to Sheep raising and cereal growing . tudents s pend three years at the College and do all the work . H l u r — A o r ti cu t e . P The public gardens at uckland , almerston North , W i h D ell ngton , Christchurc , and unedin are well worth seeing . F o r t — G W h a ka r e w a e s ry . overnment plantations are situated at _ Tikit a u R o t o ka ka h i L rewa (near Rotorua) , extending to p and akes , ' with nursery at W h a ka r e w a r e w a Waiotapu K aingaroa Plains (near G alatea) ; H anmer (with nursery) Conical H ills (nursery at Ta a n u i p ) Naseby . — F l a x ( P h o r mi u m ) I n d u s try The best localities for studying the fla x industry within easy distance of Wellington are S hannon and M ir n i a u ; o n the Palmerston North Railway line . 62

G I G - W N E W EN INEER N ORK S IN ZEALAND . Engineers and others who are interested in public works and other undertakings will find inspection of many works throughout the D ominion of considerable value . To such , attention is directed to the undermen tio n e d A u ckl a n d — I n and around the city there are the city drainage S works , which are on the combined ystem , with discharge into the ebb tides of the outer harbour ; City electric tramways , a feature

- being a few of the steep grades ; City water supply , with the new N ih o t a u e p Reservoir ; city concrete str ets , the first constructed on D a large scale in the ominion ; destructor , dealing with household

G - H garbage ; rafton reinforced concrete arch bridge . Of the arbour ’ - - d e fle c tin Board s works the reinforced concrete wharves , the tide g moles , electric cranes , reclamations , and the dry dock are particularly interesting . — N a pi e r The successful construction of a harbour on an open coast in the presence of drifting shingle is well illustrated by the outer breakwater . The long reinforced concrete bridge carrying road H and railway across the Inner arbour is a work worthy of a visit . N e w P l ym o u th — The development of a harbour in face of a large littoral sand drift is a lesson in such work . The oil wells Should not be missed nor the fine asphalted country roads . — W a n a n u i A - g ttention is directed to the harbour works , the bridges over the river on which the town stands , and particularly ’ - D u r ie s H to the passenger lift giving access to the higher levels of ill .

W l l n t — I n e i g o n . and around the City of Wellington the hilly country has required the development of many interesting works , o f which the following may be pointed out S ewage drainage of th e

- S th e low lying parts by the hone system , compressed air required being derived by power obtained from the destructor ; the general gravitation system with sea outfall , and minor district systems with

- K septic tanks City water supply , with the main reservoirs at arori and Wainui , and subsidiary reservoirs in the City , those at the high levels being fed by electrically operated , multistage , centrifugal pumps S tunnels for roads and tramways passing through ridges at eatoun , K H f arori , and ataitai , the last for tramway tra fic only electric tram

K . ways , particularly the hill systems ; the cable tramway to elburn

- The recently introduced municipal milk Supply Should be studied . Th e development of the storage and handling of exports and imports o n the wharves will be found to be a useful study ; also the Pipit e a

- - reinforced concrete wharf , the patent slip , and the boat harbour . On R im u t a ka 1 1 the railways , the incline , of in 5, operated by the Fell system o f centre rail ; and the recently installed automatic electric signals on both double and Single lines may be seen at work .

h r i s tc h u r ch — A t P C Christchurch , the City of the lains , may be

- u - t o seen water s pply from artesian wells , and the pumping station

- supply the reservoir ; sewage farm , sewage pumping station , pre

- - liminary treatment septic tanks , refuse destructor , electric tr amways , and street works . 63

— L ytte l to n This place is the seaport for Christchurch and part o f P D b y the Canterbury rovincial istrict , and separated therefrom the

- li p of an extinct volcanic crater which is pierced by a railway tunnel . L s e a yttelton has an artificial harbour in an inlet of the , where moles o u t have been constructed , and extensive dredging carried by modern o n machines , the most interesting being the dredge the Fruhling

system . — Tim a r u H ere is another example of a harbour being constructed

with great success on an open coast , where there is a large shingle i s . drift , and which subj ect to very heavy seas

D u n e d in — h a s in te r e s tin ' w o r ks The City many g , of which may

n : S - be mentioned the followi g ewage with sea outfall , water supply

with reservoirs , asphalt streets , and the electric tramways . The H ’ Otago arbour Board s activities embrace wharves , reclamations , control and deepening of the channel to Port Chalmers and at the

H H - eads . The works at the eads dealing with the littoral sand drift P have been a great success . There are two dry docks at ort Chalmers . D h The unedin cable tramways , giving access to the hill suburbs (t ree H in number) , are very interesting . The Maori ill electric tramway is interesting as being one of the very earliest constructed electric tramways . W e s tl a n d — The west coast of the S outh Island provides a field in

- which the mining engineer will be at home . The coal mines north o f G - Westport , also at Reefton and in the rey Valley the gold bearing

- reefs in the Reefton region ; the alluvial gold dredge at Rimu , and a few sluicing claims , may be seen with profit . In connection with the

- s coal mines , the railway , tramways , inclines , bridges , and other works A required to bring the coal to market are an education . ttention is

- G o drawn to the harbour works at Westport and reym uth , controlling

- m u h r - - e b o c e s . river through shingle drift The Otira railway tunnel , n o w nearing completion , is five miles and a quarter in length . It e S A 1 pass s through the outhern lps , on a grade of in 3 3 it may be seen during the j ourney from Christchurch .

H . R . W . OLME S

- S E ELECTR I C POW ER TATIO NS I N N W Z EALAND .

The q uestion of electric - power supply in New Zealand is of especial interest in view of the liberal policy adopted by the G overnment in

- D Th e the development of the water power resources of the ominion . general policy adopted is that provision shall be made ultimately to supply every farm and settlement in the D ominion to which lines c a n be e xtended profitably .

A t present two large G overnment hydro - electric - power stations L 1 1 6 are in operation . ake Coleridge started supply in 9 , and is now

t o h - developed up . p . The power station is located in the

- Rakaia Valley , sixty three miles west of Christchurch , and is accessible

- o r m - by motor car , train and otor coach , by a good road from Christ D church . The Waipori Rapids plant has been developed by the unedin

h . h . . City Council to p , and extensions to p are in hand

- c a r D . It is accessible by motor , and is about thirty miles from unedin 64

The S outhland Electric - power Board is now developing L ake M n w a i h o o . e to p The works are in hand , and are xpected to b e in - Operation within two years . The power station Site is accessible — - c a r from I nvercargill by motor about sixty miles . In the North Island the H o r a h o r a Rapids plant w a s cons tructed

G - 1 1 0 by the Waihi old mining Company about 9 , and pur chased by G 1 1 . h b u t the overnment in 9 9 It has a capacity of p , is being

t h - - ex ended to . p . The power house is accessible by motor car H P u ta r u r u from amilton (thirty miles) or (twenty miles) . The Waikaremoana installation has j ust been completed with h . h p capacity as a first instalment Of the large . p . plant . h — This p . is employed only to supply Wairoa district a distance

‘

- . c a r of forty miles It is accessible by coach or motor from Wa iroa , H ’ awke s Bay .

For the Wellington D istrict the M a n ga h a o River power - sta tion — S - five m t is in hand , near hannon , and sixty miles fro

. e Wellington The works are in an interesting stage , and are accessibl from Wellington by motor c a r (seventy miles) or from S hannon (ten miles) . P a t A G reliminary work is in hand the rapuni orge , n the W to h River , for a development of . p . to p h n extension to . p . This is a very interesting developme t owing to the method of utilization of the natural features of the

a - H H o r a h o r a ground . It is ccessible by motor car from amilton , via

P u t a r u r u u . Rapids (about forty miles) , or from (abo t nine miles)

P - % I n addition , the New lymouth Borough has a hydro electric h W a iw a ka ih o a power plant of about p . on the River , bout P P u four miles by road from New lymouth . lans have been drawn p h for extending the plant to p .

Other interesting water - power developments are those of th e

D ominion Cement Company at Wairua Falls h . p . twenty miles ' b W H S in y road from hangarei ; awera Electric upply Company , the W a in go n go r o River (800 about twelve miles from H awera ; G overnment Tourist D epartment at Okere Falls (3 00 about thirteen miles by road or lake from Rotorua ; and the Tauranga Borough plant at Omanawa Falls about fifteen miles b y road from Tauranga .

— - There are in New Zealand in all sixty one electric power stations , ‘ : vV - 6 000 . . of a total capacity of 9 , h p , made up as follows ater power — — h - 0w e r 1 0 2 0 h 2 . . 7 stations , p steam p stations , 9 , 9 7 p — — — - . . 2 2 60 . . 2 gas power stations , 4 , 4 h p oil power stations , h p The largest of the steam stations are the A uckland City power - s ta tio n K ’ h A at ing s Wharf p ) , and the uckland Tramway power station at H obson S treet h p ) ; the Wellington City power H S 0 00 station at arris treet (5, and the Wellington Tramway — h W e l l in t o a CI t power Station at Jervois Quay p . ) The g y d Co uncil is building a large station at Evans Bay ( 1 5 000 h . p . designe to take over the load of both of these city plants , and this station is no w in an interesting stage for inspection . It is easily accessible by

- tram car (Miramar or S eatoun cars) .

L . . BIRKS

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