Byes THE . i, .? PROCEEDINGS fu Nirw Soute Wates FOR THE YEAR 1924 VOL. XLIxX WITH SIXTY PLATES and 203 Text-figures. SYDNBY: PRINTED AND PUBLISHED FOR THE SOCIETY BY THE SYDNEY AND MELBOURNE PUBLISHING CO., LTD. 29 Alberta Street, Sydney, and SOLD BY THE SOCIETY. 1924-1925 CONTENTS OF PROCEEDINGS 1924 PART I. (No. 195). (Issued 9th April, 1924.) Pages. Presidential Address, delivered at the Forty-ninth Annual Meeting, 26th March, 1924, by A. F. Basset Hull. [Plates i-ili.] .. .. .. ik-xvii. Hilecctions and “Ammoumeements) 25 5.6 G8 sc.) evdeteede os elegans XVlli. Hons ‘reasurenis’ Balance Sheets 2 5) 4 25 Sue ee se cw sl ee, | XD ORXI. PART II.. (No. 196). (Issued 2nd July, 1924.) Studies in the vegetation of arid and semi-arid New South Wales. Part ii. The botanical features of the Grey Range and its neighbourhood. By Marjorie I. Collins, B.Sc., Linnean Macleay Fellow of the Society inpelyo Lamy. | (lates ol. -1K.))ia -vsmualaulicrt « oytesik erst ele! 152216h Studies in the Epacridaceae. i. The life-history of Styphelia Wongépaliti (RiBr.).. By Patrick ae M.A., B.Se., B.Se. Ag. . (Thirty-one aa ae SA : RN EIND Ds ORR M., I6QEITR iv. CONTENTS. PART iy (Nowl9%)): (Issued 24th October, 1924.) Results from Roy Bell’s Molluscan collections. By Tom Iredale. (Plates XXX111.-XXXVi. ) : Two new thrips-galls end ee Sanaa, eon New, South Wwiele! By W. Docters van Leeuwen and H. H. Karny. a ae by J. H. Maden, F.R.S.). (Three Text-figures) . On some Australian Scarabaeidae (Coleoptera). By Arthur M. Tey F.E.S. (Nineteen Text-figures) .. . Entomostraca collected in the vicinity oi dele, New Zealand.’ By Marguerite Henry, B.Se., Linnean Macleay Fellow of the ces a, Zoology. (Five Text- fenes) ees Notes on breeding Entomostraca from cred rad) and hele eines in aquaria. By Marguerite Henry, B.Sc., Linnean ae! Fellow of the Society in Zoology. ee iaste WMO WANS oe Pet tatiats The nectar of flowers. By Thos, Steel.” cus Notes on Australian Diptera. No. iii. By J. R. Malloch. Commnnenen by Dr. HE. W. Ferguson). (Four Text-figures) . An Australian Caryophyllaeid Cestode. By erocescon T. Tisaray Johnston, M.A., D.Se. (Seventeen Text-figures). .. . Notes on Australian Diptera. No. iv. By J. R. Malloch. (Communicated by Dr. E. W. Ferguson). (¥ive Text-figures). : Te stameraie A revision of the Australian Chiromyzini (Sietinngiiias, Diptera). By G. H. Hardy. (Seventeen Text-figures). Reon aeelanrs The motor nerve-endings of the limb muscles of fie Rays (rane tem- poraria) and of the muscles of the pectoral fin of the Dog-fish (Squalus acanthias). By P. D. F. Murray, B.Se., Linnean Macleay Fellow of the Society in Zoology. (Plates xxxvii.-xliil.). : Studies in plant pigments. Part ii. The red pigment induced by ee injury in Eucalyptus stricta. By J. M. Petrie, D.Sc., F.I.C., Linnean Macleay Fellow of the Society in Biochemistry. (Plate ane) hs Mite of genus Eriophyes associated with malformation of leaves of Eucalyptus stricta. By W. B. Gurney, F.E.S. (One Text-figure). PART IV. (No. 198). (Issued 29th December, 1924.) Revision of Australian wanes: capa By A. Jefferis Turner, M.D., F.E.S. Upper Permian Golceoreral and a new ‘order ‘eon ihe ‘Belmont Beds, New South Wales. By R. J. Tillyard, M.A., Se.D., D.Sc, F.N.Z., Inst., F.L.S., F.E.S. (Plates xlv.-xlvi., and fie Text-figures) The Influence of certain Colloids upon Fermentation. Part i. By R. Greig-Smith, D.Sc., varia Bacteriologist to the Society. (Six Text-figures),. . SE anes seo TeCuies PRN CREA RAREOMAD. <<) 5.” oO. yABRGER eee Australian Nemecteridael (inves). By G.. H. Hardy. (Thirteen Text-figures ) ai Sl lees rach Memo tester ellll GAch Nie.) yas AM OMMMRMORD. «sy cmets Pages. 179-278 279-282 283-312 313-318 319-323 324-328 329-338 339-347 348-359 360-370 371-385 386-394 395-396 397-428 429-435 436-446 447-460 CONTENTS. Vv. Pages. Two new Hemiptera from New South Wales. By Herbert M. Hale. ens by A. J. Nicholson, M.Sc.). er xlvii.- Sivas) ve: «Pears 0 461-467 Kleven new medio of Viecmeen nin Gecroniecans) Rocks) Myall Lakes, N.S.W. By John Mitchell. (Plates xlix.-lii.) .. .. 468-474 An ecological study of the flora of Mount Wilson. Part i. The West tation of the basalt. By P. Brough, M.A., B.Sec., B.Se. Agr., John McLuckie, M.A., D.Se., and Arthur H. K. Petrie. (Plates lvii.- Ix.; and five Teceheures yi 475-498 A further reference to the occurrence Be Merista plebeve Sac in New South Wales. By John Mitchell. (Plate lili.) .. .. . 499-503 A preliminary reference to a new species of Elonichthys om the ae Beds of the Newcastle Coal Measures. By John Mitchell. (Plate abl) ‘ Seuravelate 503 Note upon peamining fhe. Eiecraeeani -ion We cnceateaticn Colorimietenlin’ in small quantities of fluids. By R. Greig-Smith, D.Sc, Macleay Bacteriologist to the Society .. .. 504-508 Critical notes on the Temnocephaloidea. By ereteceor W. A Gasvell M.A., D.Se., F.R.S. (Plates liv.-lvi.) .. .. i 509-520 Australian Coleoptera: Notes and new species. Noe iv. By H. i Carter, B.A., F.E.S. (Thirteen Text-figures) .. .. .. ‘ 521-544 PART V. (No. 199). (Issued 18th February, 1925.) ipalancessheeta(Bacteriolorys) benim ees ee eis cl val een aes oh eis ate Xxi. Abstractmot se FOoceedInesm. wishes 6 Gal eee ME OTR oe let oe) SKIL OX RAT, Monationsmand Hxchanges ti. sees ee isikios), ences Oars | XXXII Rl SEO eI OLS Wien yeah ic HVAC Peseta oak geitig “nap Me SaaeT Sreated Vickie mae Le og cco ],-liv. BEEN Mr epee teh ee ORME TIES oh Re nas WENN ee Meee Aya a1 dal Pa COE Yagi Oy SIA aya Be lv.-lxxxl. vi. CONTENTS. LIST OF NEW ORDINAL, FAMILY AND GENERIC NAMES PROPOSED IN THIS. VOLUME (1924). Austropeus (Helopinae, Tenebrionidae) Notoprataeus (Heterotarsinae) .. .. 37 543° Nototrintus (Adeliinae) .. wearin 4) Balanotaenia (Caryophyllaeidae) 347 Paranisops (Notonectinae, Hemiptera) Buprestodes (Buprestinae) | 28 461 Caviceps (Chloropidae) . 300 Permophilidae (Coleoptera) 430 Deltastoma (Chloropidae) . 309 Permophilus (Permophilidae) 430 Endothina (Opatrinae, Tenebrionidae) Permosyne (Permosynidae) 431 536 Permosynidae (Coleoptera) .. .. .. 431 Eremonoma (Cnethocampinae) .. . 409 Protocoleidae (Protocoleoptera) . 434 Fergusonina (Agromyzinae) .. .. . 337 Protocoleoptera, ord. nov... .... . 434 Mesodrepta (Cnethocampinae) . 401 Protocoleus (Protocoleidae) 434 Notobubastes (Buprestinae) .. .. .. 37 NEW GENERA OF MOLLUSCA PROPOSED IN THIS VOLUME. ADORED. 60° oo 06 ae 22. Hawton s% aah ye 230) Propefusus 8 3. Astelena .. .. Ba CONS WIUOIGRGOP 90 ea G6 209: Propeleda .. .... Bathycardita . .. . 205 Fluviolanatus .. .. .. . 196 Propesinum .. BEdeva enue... 2. ale) Galfmdusi se ey: Zhky, Pugilara si. ic. Bellastraea .. ~. 202 Gazameda.. .. .... . 241 Radulphus -.. Berylsma . . 267 Glyptozaria .- .. .. .. 248 Rimulanazx .. Borniola .. .. .. » AVE Govilenmjinty 5 06 60 00 o AUD IRMe 65 Botellus . 244 TIcuncula .. .. .. 251 Salaputium Cacozelia .. .. 246 Lodderena .. . 233 = Salsipotens Chioneryx .... .. 210 Melliteryx .... .. 207 =Scissurona .. Coenaculum .. .. 244 Mendicula...... 206 Seilarex .. Comitileda .. .. . 185 Mesoclanculus 224 Semelangulus Cosmetalepas .... . 218 Minopa .. 226 Solamen .. Cnosscoltay nae 251 Naccula .. 238 = Sophismalepas .. Cuptdoliva .. .. 259 Notocallista 210 Spectamen .. Cymatiella 254 Notogibbula .. 226 Stipator .. Dolicrossea .. .. 251 Notolimea 194 Subzeidora .. Elegidion .. .. 220 Notomyrtea .. 206 Talabrica .. Ethminolia .. 228 Numella .. 206 Thracidora .. .. .. Eucrassatella .. 202 Patellanax .. 239 = Trichomusculus .. .. Eumarcia .. 211 Peculator . BO) WEG so oon Eximiothracia .. .. .. . 199 Pervicacia.. .. AGS GAWG oo oo. 66 iat Pratulum .. 207 Page 34, line 25, for Bendin read Baudin CORRIGENDA. Page 104, 7th line from bottom, for locis gramineis read sylvis Page 105, line 7, delete “in grassy places ” Page 105, lines 9, 10, after Type), read Forest Reserve, Packakariki, Whakatikei Page 108, 8 lines from bottom; and page 110, line 10, for Cleland read Cleland and Cheel Page 151, for Helix aspera read H. aspersa Page 261, line 29, for 92 read 62 Page 347, line 9, for larvei read laruei CONTENTS. Vili. LIST OF PLATES. PROCEEDINGS, 1924. i.—Shellharbour, N.S.W. ii— Moffat Head, Q.; Point Cartwright, Q. iiiPort Macquarie, N.S.W.; Magnetic Island, Q. iv.-ix.—Vegetation of the Grey Range and its neighbourhood. x.—New Trilobites from Bowning, N.S.W. xi.—General habit of Cassytha. xii.-xv.—Australasian species of Secotium. XVi.-xxvil.—Species of Loranthus. XXVili.-xxxii—Phyllopoda from New South Wales. XXXili,-xxxvi.—Mollusca from Roy Bell’s Collections. XXXVil.-xliii—Motor nerve-endings in limb muscle of the frog and in muscles of the pectoral fin of Squalus acanthias. xliv.—Hacalyptus stricta injured by species of Hriophyes. xlv.-xlvi—Upper Permian Coleoptera from Belmont, N.S.W. xlvii.-xlviiimNew Hemiptera from New South Wales. xlix.-lii—New species of Aviculopecten from the Carboniferous of New South Wales. lii.—EHlomchthys davidi, n.sp., and Middle Devonian brachiopods from New South Wales. liv.-lviReproductive system in species of Temnocephala. lvii—Map of the Mount Wilson Region. lviii.-lx.— Vegetation of the basalt at Mount Wilson. STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID NEW SOUTH WALES. Part ii. THs BOTANICAL FEATURES OF THE GREY RANGE AND ITS NEIGHBOURHOOD. By Margorte I. Couuins, B.Se., F.L.8., Linnean Macleay Fellow of the Society in Botany. (Plates iv.-ix.) [Read 26th March, 1924.] Introduction. As an introduction to a previous paper upon the Plant Ecology of the Barrier District (Collins, 1923) the writer described the physiographic and climatic features of Western New South Wales. It was shown that the extensive sandy plains stretching out to the west of the Main Divide are interrupted at rare intervals by regions of high land, old peneplain surfaces which stand partly buried in their own detritus. The most important of these old residuals are the Cobar peneplain, about 140 miles east of the River Darling, and the Barrier and Grey Ranges in the far west and north-west respectively. Western New South Wales was further shown to be a region of decreasing annual rainfall as one proceeds from east to west, the region of lowest rainfall in tne State, Yandama, being close to the boundaries between New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia. The choking up of main and subsidiary stream channels with sand and de- tritus, and the cutting down of new channels in the old creek beds, in addition to other interesting physiographic features, point to the far west of New South Wales being a region of increasing aridity in recent geological time. This being the ease, the vegetation of such an area should offer much that: is of special interest to the plant ecologist. In the paper referred to above (Collins, 1923, pp. 246-261) the writer dealt with the plant associations of the various habitats in the Barrier Range, and, as far as she was able, from the data available, discussed the possible developmental relationships of the chief associations. It was with the intention of adding to the data collected in the Barrier Range, and thereby forming a truer and more complete conception of the relationships of the plant associations, that the Grey Range was visited in 1922. Although comparatively few species were found in addition to those already listed for the Barrier Range, yet the reaction upon the vegetation of certain physiographic features not previously met, such as the extensive areas of parallel sand ridges and the formation of “gibber” plains and slopes, seems to merit the special consideration of a separate paper. Also, the occurrence of summer rains 2 STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID N.S.W., will be shown to have some effect upon the nature of the ground flora, an effect not appreciably noticed in the Barrier Range, and one of special interest in a pastoral country. In connection with this investigation in the Grey Range, the writer is in- debted to Dr. W. MacGillivray of Broken Hill for much assistance, to Mr. Fuller of Mt. Poole and Mr. and Mrs. Winton of Yandama Stations for their hospitality and kindness in facilitating the work. The writer also wishes to express her thanks to Mr. J. H. Maiden, F.R.S., and his staff, who placed the facilities of the National Herbarium at her disposal and assisted in the identification of many species. Tue GEOLOGY AND PHYSIOGRAPHY OF THE GREY RANGE. The Grey Range is a line of low undulating hills extending from about Lat. 30° S., Long. 140° 50’, across the New South Wales boundary into Queensland. Although the height of these hills ranges from about 400 to 500 feet above the level of the surrounding’ plains, there are occasional higher peaks which stand out sharply, such as Mount Poole, Mount Sturt, Mount Browne and Mount Shannon. The Grey Range is held by certain geologists to be a northerly extension of the Barrier Range, and in age its rocks have been tentatively placed with the Willyama Series (Archaean) of this latter Range. Andrews says in this connection (1922, p. 63) “The North and South axis along which members of the Willyama Series are arranged, is continued to the Queensland border, a distance of 250 miles North from Broken Hill, the older rocks cropping up as small shields and long ridges at distant intervals (Packsaddle, Koonanberry, Mount Arrowsmith, ete.) Of these the most marked are the Tibbooburra and Milparinka groups, distant respectively 210 and 185 miles from Broken Hill.” The most noteworthy of the rocks making up the Grey Range are claystones and slates with a dip ranging from about 60° to vertical, and with a strike of about N. 35° W. (Andrews, 1922, p. 62). Occasional thin beds of sandstone were observed by the writer interbedded with the slates near Mt. Poole. Large quartz reefs are a consistent feature of the range and are mostly thinly veneered with oxide of iron. The presence of these quartz reefs, and particularly the sheets of quartz rubble resulting from their fragmental weathering, recalls a similar occurrence in the beds of the Torro- wangee Series north of Broken Hill. In the case of the Grey Range, however, the silicification appears to have been more intense, hills: and plains at the present day being often entirely covered with dazzling white quartz fragments, which, in the distance, give the appearance of snow. Gold, which was at one time mined in’ the Grey Range and is at the present time often found in the sandy creek beds after rains, was no doubt liberated by the breaking down of these quartz reefs. Further evidences of silicification are found in the chalcedonised pebbles, agates and jaspers, so common a feature of the rubble and gibber sheets. Intrusive rocks of the range are chiefly the granite masses, such as that occurring near Tibbooburra, and the diorite dykes which frequently traverse the slates. An interesting occurrence of sedimentary rocks in the district is that of the Cretaceous sandstones which extend into New South Wales from Queensland as outliers from the Artesian Series. These sandstones are more commonly found in situ near Tibbooburra and upon denudation contribute in large measure to the formation of the gibber sheets which are a noteworthy feature of the lower slopes of the Range. BY MARJORIE I. COLLINS. 3 Physiography. ‘ The physiographic features of the Grey Range are still more markedly of an arid cycle than those of the Barrier Range. Streams again originate centri- fugally in the hills. The Milparinka and Evelyn Creeks are of note on the eastern flanks and eventually lose themselves on the plains towards the Darling River; while Yandama Creek on the west, flows towards the Lake Callabonna drainage basin. As in the Barrier Range, these creeks are sandy or pebble-strewn courses lined by gum-trees (Hucalyptus). Occasionally waterholes occur in the creek beds, and these are often the sole source of water supply in times of prolonged drought. With a good downpour of rain, however, water runs in these creeks for some hours and floods the surrounding country. As in the case of the Barrier Range, the Grey Range is surrounded by ex- tensive plains. These are, for the most part, of a red sandy soil, with occasional patches of clay and darker loam in the areas subjected to flooding. The Plains stretch on the south to the Barrier Range and are interrupted at intervals by isolated peaks and ridges, such as Mt. Arrowsmith, Koonanberry Range, Mt. Packsaddle. It is on these plains between the Barrier and Grey Ranges that the extensive clay-pan lakes, Bancannia and Cobham, occur. In the east the sandy plains stretch to the Darling River, while to the north and west they extend, as an almost endless waste of sand, to the Central Aus- tralian Desert. A A feature of these sandy plains, and one not developed to any marked ex- tent near the Barrier Range, is the occurrence of mile after mile of parallel sand ridges separated by clay flats. Mr. H. Y. L. Brown narrates (1883, p. 3) “These plains are chiefly composed of red loam and sand with soft silt depressions, clay- pans or hard depressed floors, and dry lakes. Further North these depressions become deeper, and the sand ridges commence from here to Yandama Creek; they are composed of loose red sand and vary in height from 30-50 feet, and are placed in roughly parallel rows at distances of from a few inches to a quarter of a mile apart, being separated by long reaches of clay’ and silt flats.” The trend of these sand ridges appears to vary. The Cobham sand ridges, on the mail route from Broken Hill to Milparinka, cross the track diagonally, trend- ing almost north-east, while west of the Grey Range they are approximately north and south in direction. In addition to the clay flats between the sand ridges, clay pans of varying size and generally of cireular outline occur on the sandy plains and form an im- portant feature of the country after rains. In the neighbourhood of the range itself and extending out onto the plains for some distance are the gibber or stone sheets. The gibber plains are perhaps amongst the most characteristic of the physio- graphic features of desert-arid Australia. Spencer and Gillen say of them (1912, p. 40) “Nothing could possibly be more desolate than these ‘gibber fields’ . . The horizon is shimmering and indistinct, and the level ground is covered with a layer of close-set, purple brown stones, all made smooth and shiny by the con- stant action of wind-borne sand-grains, for in winter especially, a strong South Kast wind often blows all day long.” The stones making up these gibber sheets are rounded and polished and often glazed by the deposition of a layer of silica or iron. They are hard and flinty, and testify to the intense silicification of the strata from which they were derived. Geologists hold that these stones are de- 4 STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID N.S.W., rived from the cappings of Cretaceous sandstones, which apparently extended at one time over a much greater area than at the present day. In the neighbourhood of the Grey Range the gibbers are limited in extent and were nowhere observed to extend over such boundless wastes as described by various writers for the central, more desert regions of Australia (Spencer and Gillen, 1912; Jack, 1915; Howchin and Gregory, 1909). They are found covering slopes and bases of low hills and extend for limited distances onto the plains. Yandama, on the western fringe of the Range, gives noteworthy evidence of this formation. Another physiographic evidence of aridity in the Grey Range is to be found in the occurrence of certain salts in the soil. Gypsum deposits are frequent and fragments of crystalline gypsum are commonly found amongst the gibbers and on the rubble slopes. Saline lakes occur to the west of the Range and increase in number as one passes across the South Australian border into true Desert Country. Lake Frome, Lake Callabonna and, to the north-west, Lake Eyre are the most im- portant of these lakes. Travertine also occurs in the range, constituting a kind of hard pan some slight distance beneath the surface soil. CLIMATE. * Rainfall. The Grey Range is situated in the most arid portion of New South Wales, in fact the plains upon its western and north-western flanks fringe the most arid portion of Australia—the Lake Eyre basin. Yandama, on the western side of the Range, has an average annual rainfall of 6.55 inches, while Oodnadatta, in the Lake Eyre basin, has 4.85 ins. The monthly average distribution of rainfall is only available for two stations in the Grey Range, Milparinka and Tibbooburra, and is shown in Table I. Table I. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May. June.July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Total Malliparinikal es) 2s) ens 5G ue bby OWE GOO Or ie SBi Sel 3564S eet 5 G4s 2GY> eS Wor UMN OO MA Sos BW COM BB SO. (A COR (BB. 548 oA) (Geb we COO 8a 8e Fyom this table, it will be seen that, although there is a fair degree of uni- formity throughout the year, the average is highest for the summer months (November to February). It seems highly probable too, that if more data were available, particularly from the northern end of the range, the average for the summer months would be still higher. The position of the Grey Range is such that it receives some rain from the southern region of winter rain contro] and some from the region of summer rain control. This results in a degree of seasonal uniformity, but at the same time is responsible for the extreme variation in rain- fall total. The following table indicates the extent of this variation. * For meteorological data used in this paper the writer is indebted to Mr. Mares, Weather Bureau, Sydney. BY MARJORIE I. COLLINS. 5 Table II., showing variation in total rainfall for stations in the Grey Range, New South Wales. Station. Rainfall in inches. Year. { MSE sti ane Meivecie abate 16.20 1890 Wammene \eaiealdowestinswuiiuenean Seer lkauee 2.38 1905 SEBO (ft ERI Sal Cea ERG 18.13 1885 SURE SUNN AAS Tan teReinn a a eee 2.18 1888 Huphestieniiasnie soph ek MMiel 42 1887 Tibbooburra { Lowest 1.88 1919 A feature of the rainfall in the Grey Range, in which this Range resembles the Barrier and other arid regions in Australia, is that a certain percentage of the rain falls in small amounts, from .10 to .25 inch. If,-as is often the ease, these small falls are followed by intensely hot dry days, then it is only reasonable to suppose that a large amount of this water is lost by evaporation before it can be made use of by the plants. Dr. Cannon (1921, p. 67) observed at Leigh’s Creek and other stations in South Australia that fine soil is moistened to a depth of 4 em. by a rain of .21 inch, while a coarser soil is penetrated to a depth of 8-9 em. He shows further that “given favorable soil conditions, a rain amounting to .20 inch, penetrates the soil sufficiently to moisten the horizon occupied by the roots of many annuals and also by a portion of the horizontal roots of certain perennials.” In addition to small falls of rain, this country is one characterised by severe thunderstorms, often local in nature, during which several inches of rain may fall. During the writer’s recent visit to Yandama in October, 1922, 1.25 inch fell in one fall after a drought of two years. Later, during December, 1922, falls of seven, eight and ten inches were recorded from various localities in the Grey Range within a few days. Heavy and soaking rains which can penetrate the hard baked surfaces of clay, and can percolate through the more heated upper layers of the sandy soil, are apparently the only rains which affect the larger perennial plants with their more deep-seated root systems. _ Evaporation and temperature. There is no information available concerning evaporation in the Grey Range, but, Judging from the rate at which the water dries in the clay pans and water- holes after rain, the amount of evaporation must be considerable. According to the mean evaporation map for Australia (Cannon, 1921, p. 26) the north-west corner of New South Wales, including the Grey Range, comes between the 90 and 100 inch lines. Temperature records are also meagre, but, if records for Tibbooburra may be taken as typical for the Range, the average may be regarded as from 69° to 70°. - Table III. shaws the monthly averages in temperature for Tibbooburra. Table III. Jan. Web, Mar. Apr. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Tibbooburra ® 83.9 83.0 76.3 68.3 59.8 54.2 52.4 57.% 63.4 70.0 76.5 82.3 The highest shade temperature recorded for Tibbooburra is 115° and the lowest in the same year 28° giving a range of 87° F. ~ 6 STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID N.S.W., Previous Investigations. Until the present time, our knowledge of the plants and their relationships in the Grey Range has been very meagre and confined almost entirely to the botanical notes made during Sturt’s Exploring Expedition to the interior in 1844- 1845 (Sturt, 1849). More recently Dr. W. MacGillivray referred to various species collected in the Grey Range and its neighbourhood while on a journey to Cooper’s Creek from Broken Hill (MacGillivray, 1923). After leaving Flood’s Creek, at the northern extremity of the Barrier Range, in the advance upon the distant Grey Range, Sturt and his party encountered sand ridge after sand ridge covered with pine trees. The red clayey flats between were clothed with “Salsolaceous plants.” Sturt says of these ridges (1849, p. 184) :— “The sand ridges, some partially, some thickly, covered with Pine-trees [| Callitris robusta (?) | were from thirty to fifty feet high, and about eighty yards at their base, running nearly longitudinally from north to south. They were generally well covered with grass, which appeared to have been the produce of recent rains; and several very beautiful leguminous plants were also growing on them” [pro- bably Crotalaria, Swainsona, Clhanthus, Indigofera, ete.]. Later, when attempting to reach a hypothetical inland sea north-west of the Grey Range, Sturt is seriously hampered by these sandridges and exclaims— “Sandy ridges once more rose up in terrible array against us, although we had left the last full 50 miles behind, even the animals I think regarded them with dismay” (p. 378) . . . . “Here, on both sides of us, to the eastward and to the westward, they followed each other like the waves of the sea in endless succession, suddenly terminating as I have already observed on the vast plain into which they ran” (p. 380). Sturt records the occurrence of Acacias, Hakeas and Melaleucas on these ridges, but as he proceeds into the true desert country of the Lake Eyre basin, he finds the ridges bare but for the “poreupine” grass or “spinifex” (Triodia irritans) and an occasional “species of Mesembryanthemum with light pink fiowers on a slender stalk” (p. 405), by which he probably meant Calandrima Balonensis (Portulacaceae). Sturt refers frequently to the slopes of the Grey Range covered with quartz rubble and to the gibber sheets, which he describes as being bare of timber. An outstanding feature of his narrative from the botanical point of view is his reference to pine thickets and pineries on sandridges north of the Barrier Range and in the neighbourhood of the Grey Range. There is no doubt that by the pine Sturt referred to Callitris robusta or some species of Callitris. Since the pine is almost absent from these ridges at the present day and is only represented by scattered groups in both Barrier and Grey Ranges (Collins, 1923, p. 262) Sturt’s botanical notes describing conditions of nearly 80 years ago, have an added interest. Investigations of arid regions in South Australia, where physiographic and climatic conditions are somewhat similar to those described by the writer for the Grey Range, have been carried out in recent years by Dr. Cannon (1921) and by Osborn and Adamson (1922). Physiographically the Grey Range and its neighbourhood approximate more closely to the Oodnadatta region (Cannon, 1921) in that gibber slopes and plains with sparse vegetation and sand ridges and claypans constitute extensive habitats. A difference exists, however, in that the serub vegetation of the sand ridges near Oodnadatta is more open and contains fewer species than near the Grey Range in New South Wales. Osborn and Adamson (1922, p. 543) deseribe a luxuriant sandhill vegetation for the Ooldea region in South Australia. Although Ooldea is situated just within BY MARJORIE I. COLLINS. 7 the 10-inch isohyet and, consequently, the serub vegetation in this locality con- tains a wider range of species than observed by the writer in north-western New South Wales, the observations of these writers upon developmental relationships of the vegetation bear out, to a certain extent, those already made by the present writer in arid New South Wales (Collins, 1923). The Plant Habitats. As in the case of the Barrier Range, there are certain fairly well defined habitats in the Grey Range and its neighbourhood. The most important of these are the rocky hills and slopes, the sandy plains and the ereek beds. The rocky hills and slopes are of two distinct types—the slate and claystone deposits making up the greater part of the Range, and the lower hills and slopes which are covered for the main part by gibbers and rubble. The sandy plains are either level stretches of sand dotted with clay-pans, or they are thrown up into a corrugation of sand ridges. The latter are rarely colonised as thickly as the sandy’ plains*and possibly indicate less beneficial water relations. Where the lower slopes of the range merge into the plains, the latter are covered with sheets of rubble and gibbers. These sheets are in process of formation and represent primary bare areas within the plains. They are almost destitute of tree and shrub vegetation and, on account of the heat reflected from the polished surface of the stones, these gibber slopes and plains. represent a most inhospitable habitat for the invasion and establishment of seedlings. However, miniature depressions 0c¢- cur in the gibber sheets, and, since these represent centres of small localised drainage systems, they have naturally become centres of colonisation after rains. The claypans are a consistent feature of flat sandy country throughout arid and desert Australia. They vary considerably in size, ranging from a few yards to over a mile in diameter. In outline the pans are sometimes circular, but more often irregular. Neighbouring pans often merge into one another, owing to the Sweeping away, by wind, of the intervening barrier of sand. In some eases there is hardly any boundary delimiting the claypans from the surrounding plains and in these cases the pans tend to become buried in sand drift. In other cases a rim of sand is built up round the pan, the water-carrying capacity of which is thereby increased. Tate and Watt (1896, p. 23) offer the following suggestion to account for the origin and formation of claypans. “They naturally oceur only where the country is flat. . . . . There is, therefore, a tendency for the water to le on the surface or rather to be gathered into slight depressions, which are sure to exist even on otherwise almost level surfaces. At first the water that was gathered into these slight depressions would almost immediately percolate the porous strata, but in doing so it would leave behind a deposit of silt. This would happen with every subsequent heavy fall of rain, until the silt suspended in the water and carried into the depression and deposited there, was in sufficient quantity to prevent further percolation. The claypan has now become established, and will retain water for a longer or shorter period, and as there is now very little pereo- lation through the bottom there will be no further settling of the floor as there may haye been in the early stages.” — It is possible that many of the claypans originate in the manner described above; others perhaps are formed by the removal of sand from the clayey sub- stratum, which is known to lie close to the surface in some localities at least, and the subsequent holding of water in these clayey areas. Surrounding the larger claypans there are definite zones subjected to flooding. 8 STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID N.S.W., These are known as “box” flats, since they are colonised by the box, Eucalyptus bicolor (Collins, 1923, Plate xxu.). The sandy creek beds are colonised by box (EH. bicolor and E. microtheca) and river red gums (H#. rostrata), species of Acacia and other small trees and shrubs. It is on these water-courses that the only tall tree vegetation of the re- gion is found. The Vegetation of the Rocky Hills and Slopes. As has been shown above, the rocky hills and slopes are of two main types, those which are made up of slatey deposits, and those where the surface soil is covered with a rubble of quartz fragments or with a mosaic of gibbers. In either case these slopes are but sparsely timbered. The slate outcrops bear an open vegetation of scattered bushes and small trees, all of which are represented in the serub flora of the sandy plains to be described later. Species of Acacia such as Acacia aneura F.v.M., A. tetragonophylla F.v.M. and A. cana Maiden are fre- quently found with scattered species of Hremophila (EH. Latrobei F.v.M., E. Sturtii R.Br., H. maculata F.v.M., EH. latifolia F.v.M., H. Freelingu F.v.M., etc.) and Myoporum deserti A. Cunn. The vegetation on slate outcrops was nowhere observed by the writer to form a thick serub. At the time of the writer’s visit to the Grey Range during a period of drought (Oct., 1922) the ground between the small trees and bushes was practically bare, except for low bushes of Kochia and Atriplex and the withered remains of grasses and annuals of a previous rainy season. Although the open nature of this vegetation is no doubt due in part to the practice of grazing and the non-establishment of perennials during extended droughts, it is highly probable, in the case of the slate outcrops at least, that edaphie factors affect the general configuration of the flora to a large degree. Osborn’s observations upon the vegetation of the slate outcrops in the Mt. Lofty Ranges near Adelaide (Osborn, 1914) and those of the writer in the Barrier Range (Collins, 1923) give support to this view. Where the rainfall is great enough to ensure the growth of grasses, as near Adelaide, a grassland results. In such a climate as that of the Grey Range, however, where rain is periodic and seanty at best, the ground flora, when present, is made up chiefly of species of Chenopodiaceae (Atriplex, Kochia, Rhagodia, Bassia) and such annuals as are commonly found on the plains belonging to the Compositae, Leguminosae, Cruciferae, Gramineae, ete. The quartz rubble slopes are generally bare except for a few species of Chenopodiaceae such as Bassia brachyptera * and other species of Bassia. In one locality near Mt. Poole, a rubble and gibber slope is being colonised by a com- munity of the leafless Aesclepiad Sarcostemma australe R.Br., the so-called “caustic bush” or “snake-bush” of stockmen (Plate v., Photo 4). Gibber slopes are devoid of tree and tall shrub vegetation except in the neighbourhood of creeks, where certain shrubby species often extend up the slopes from the creek beds. In several localities Acacia Cambagei, the “gidgee’ (Plate y., Photo 6), has spread over gibber slopes to form dense serubs. The usual ap- pearance of a gibber slope, however, is that of a barren sheet of stones, un- relieved by any tall vegetation. A stunted form of Atriplex vesicariwm colonises gibber slopes and plains extensively and represents the sole vegetation for many miles (Plate v., Photo 5). Where the gibber sheets are characterised by the de- * Formerly Kochia brachyptera F. v. M. BY MARJORIE I. COLLINS. 9 pressions referred to above, small centres of colonisation occur and patches of annual vegetation are found. The withered remains of Bassia brachyptera were observed by the writer in all these depressions, the species representing again the pioneer coloniser on rubble slopes and plains (Collins, 1923, p. 253). Such annuals as Helipterum floribundum DC., H. polygalifolium DC., Myrio- cephalus Stuartu and the grasses Astrebla pectinata V.v.M. (Mitchell Grass), Iseilima Mitchelli Andr. (Flinders Grass) and Andropogon sericeus R.Br. (Blue Grass) are frequently found in these depressions. These latter are good standing erasses, and represent important additions to the flora for summer grazing. An interesting addition to the tree vegetation of the rocky outcrops of the Grey Range is the blood-wood Eucalyptus terminalis F.v.M., which occurs on the sandstones near Tibbooburra. This is the only species of Eucalyptus in the neighbourhood of the Grey Range, which grows away from creek beds or flooded flats. The Vegetation of the Sandy Plams. The vegetation of the sandy plains and sand ridges in the neighbourhood of the Grey Range is considerably more dense than that of the rocky outcrops des- seribed above. In fact, if one were to look out, from some elevated point in the range, over the surrounding country, one would see monotonous miles of dense grey-green scrub rolling away to the horizon. Occasional open spaces, practically devoid of trees and tall shrubs, point to the effects of grazing and clearing. The trees and shrubs making up this vegetation are distinctly xerophilous. The canopy or umbrella form of branching as seen in Acacia and Hremophila is com- mon, the leaves are either hard and leathery, with a marked development of selerenchyma and with thick cuticles, or they are characterised by the secretion of a layer of resin over the surface (e.g., Hremophila spp. and Dodonaea). Leaves and phyllodia are commonly strap-shaped and are generally arranged parallel to the incident rays of light. Partial or total aphylly is sometimes found as in Casuarina and EHxocarpus. Although there are no truly deciduous types in this region, it frequently happens that certain Leguminous plants shed their pinnae or leaflets and become phyllodineous (e.g. Acacia and Cassia). An interesting ease of the shedding of lateral leaflets occurs in Crotalaria Cunninghamii R.Br., where the two lateral leaflets are shed soon after the opening of the leaf, the broad terminal leaflet remaining. In this manner certain plants diminish their transpiring surface, and are thereby better fitted to withstand the intense heat and desiccating winds of summer. Species of Acacia e.g. Acacia tetragonophylla, shed their phyllodes during prolonged droughts, further production of phyllodes taking place with the comimg of rain. As has been shown above, the sandy plains are thrown up in certain areas into a corrugation of sand ridges which sueceed one another for many miles and are separated by clay flats of varying width. As a general rule the vegetation of these ridges is not so dense as that of the level sandy plain. This may be due to the less stable condition of the sand ridges or perhaps, in part, to their lower water-capacity. Small sand ridges are pioneered by clumps of Salsola Kali followed, after rain, by various annual Chenopodiaceae such as Atriplex holocarpum F.v.M., A. halimoides Lindl., A. angulatum Benth., A. campanulatum Benth., A. limbatuwm Benth., A. fissivalve F.v.M., A. Muelleri Benth. Other annuals appearing during the early colonisation of sand are various Composites such as Myriocephalus Stuartii Benth., Helipterum floribundum DC., H. strictum Benth., H. polygalifoliwm DC., also Blennodia canescens var. ptero- sperma, Solanum ellipticum R.Br., 8. esuriale Lindl. and many others. Amongst 10 STUDIES IN THE VEGETATION OF ARID AND SEMI-ARID N.S.W., the perennials, Acacia ligulata is frequently found during the early stages of development and is generally associated with the small Leguminous shrub Crota- laria dissitiflora. The long golden-flowered racemes of this latter plant bring a prodigal wealth of colour to the parched sand ridges. Although the early stages of colonisation of sand are only observable upon small recently formed ridges, it is probable that plant succession is the same for both sandy plain and sand ridge. Where open areas occur on sandy plains, owing to scrub-cutting and burning, and partly to the eating out of perennial seedlings by rabbits and sheep, a community of Atriplex vesicarium (Plate vui., Photo 11) or Kochia sedifolia is often found, K. pyramidata, K. aphylla and Rhagodia spinescens being oceasionally associated with the former. Annuals, chiefly belonging to the Compositae, Leguminosae, and* Gramineae, together with a variety of small herbs, enter the scrub in these open spaces. It has apparently been the policy of pastoralists to eut and clear scrub, in order to increase the area occupied by the saltbushes and annual herbage, and, as a result, at the present day, large open areas of saltbush country occur in the scrub. The scrub, which is apparently the climax vegetation for the region, is characterised by small trees and tall shrubs, with an undergrowth of smaller shrubs, and a groundflora of the smaller woody perennials and numerous annuals. In general character, this association closely resembles the “mulga” scrub described for the rocky hills and slopes of the Barrier Range (Collins, 1923). There are minor differences, however, in that certain species are represented in the one locality and not in the other, and certain species which are dominant in the one locality are but sparingly represented in the other. The mulga, Acacia aneura (Plate viii., Photo 14) is still the dominant species of the serub association. With Acacia aneura and often assuming the role of co- dominant, are Acacia tetragonophylla, A. cana, A. ligulata, A. Murrayana (Plate vi. Photo 10), A. Oswaldi, A. stenophylla, A. Burkitti, and A. rigens. Amongst the trees of the association, perhaps the most important are Caswarina lepidophloia (Casuarineae) Myoporum platycarpum and Eremophila longifolia (Myoporineae) Grevillea striata (Plate vi., Photo 8) and Hakea leucoptera (Proteaceae), Santa- lum lanceolatum and Exocarpus aphylla (Santalaceae) Atalaya hemiglauca (Sapin- daceae), Owenia acidula (Meliaceae) and Pittosporum phyllyraeoides (Pittospor- aceae). Of these species, Atalaya hemiglauca and Owema acidula were not ob- served by the writer in the Barrier Range, but as these are known to have ex- tended down the Darling River and to the east as far as the Cobar district, it is possible that outlying individuals do occur in the Barrier Range, although they cannot play as important a part in the scrub association as they do in the neighbourhood of the Grey Range.