ATOLL RESEARCH BULLETIN No. 57 Preliminary report on the f l o ra of Onotoa Atoll, Gilbert Islands by Edwin T. Moul Issued by THE PACIFIC SCIEKCE BOARD National Acadei,ly of Sciences--National Research Council Washington, D. C . September 15, 1957 PRELGXB!ARY REPORT ON THE FLORA OF OnOTOA ATOLL, GILBERT ISLANDS This report represents the second pa r t of the preliminary report on the work of the General Natural is t , from June 15th t o August 30th, on the Pacific Science Board's 1951 Xxpedition t o Onotoa i n the Gilbert Islands. The project wks supported by funds granted t o the Natioqal Acaderny of Sciences by Con- t r a c t N7onr-291 (oh), NR 388-001 with the Office of Naval Research. The generous cooperation of the U. S. Navy Department, the !T. S. Coast Guard, and the I i i l i t a ry A i r Transport Service i s acknoriledged. 'he author is grateful for the a i d and assistance given by Nr. Harold J. Coolidge, Nrs. Lenore Smith and Iiiss Ernestine Akers. 'he cooperation and kindness of the Brit ish Colonial Government and i t s loca l representative, Hr ir, Richard Rrrpin and h i s wife adfled much t o our comfort and success. The advice and assistance of my associates bias a constant source of help and en- couragement. IN TRODUC TI.31 The report on the animals of the a t o l l has been published i n the Atoll Research Bulletin $28, Xay 31, 1954. A preliminary report on the Geology of the a t o l l by Dr. Preston E. Cloui , ' J r . can be found i n the same publication #12, December 15, 1952. The a t o l l of Onotoa (see map), t o t a l l i ng 5.2 square miles of land, is divided in to 3 large inhabited is lands designated as North Island, South Island and Tabuarorae and four quite small uninhabited islands lcno!m as Aonteuma, Abanekeneke, Manntabuariki and Abeindngan. A population of approximately 1800 people l i v e i n t h i s small area, hence a l l land t h a t i s a t a l l useful has been planted il coconut groves. The smaller islands are primarily of cora l gravel s o i l s and supported a few coconut trees, with the exception of Nannta- buariki which had only scat tered shrub grorith. Sixty species of flowering plants have been ident i f ied. About 15: of these which are cul t ivated were confined t o the vi l lage areas. A feri species were represented by o d y one or two plants on the whole a to l l . rnGE TA T I '31 . . Coconut groves Iiost of the land on the larger islands i~as covered with coconut t rees . Small groves were a lso present on two of the s m l l e r islands. The grdves tiere generally made up of randomly sca t te red t rees of varjing h i -gh t s and ages; a few recently planted ones (on formerly inhabited s i t e s ) were i n regular rows and of uniform s i z e and age, The aspect of the coconut plantations varied with t h e i r location on the a t o l l , with the substratum and ground water conditions. Dense stands of coconut palms forming a continuous canopy, grew on the limesand s o i l s (Cloud loc . c i t . , pp. 22, 58). Such vigorous groves were typical of the lagoon s ide of the islands, along the vi l lage road. They formed dense shade and had feu understory plants. Young coconuts and Pandanus were usually present. Near the vil lages a few Ficus t rees were found i n these groves and appeared t o have been planted. =he more or l e s s well tended dense plantations, the s o i l surface was usually bare, except for a fe1.r grasses and herbs, Lepturus, Stenotaphrum, Euphorbia, and Fimbristylis a l l growing widely scattered. In many areas an accumulat io~ of f a l l en leaves and husks l i t t e r e d the s o i l and may have contributed t o the sparseness of ground cover vegetation. The densest stand of Stenotaphrum observed on the a t o l l formed a complete ground cover i n a grove on the North Island, r,~here the s o i l surface had been cleared of a11 l i t t e r . Adjoining our camp s i t e a l so on the North Island was a stand of coconut t rees reported t o be 15 years of age. These t rees were planted i n regular rows and were of uniform height. The owner had kept the s o i l c l ea r of litter and i n the dense shade the herbaceous vegetation grew widely scattered. In contras t t o these heavy groves, were the thin, i r regular stands, usually located down the center of the l a rge islands and on the seaward side, but generally on lime sand s o i l . Since the canopy was qui te open, the under- s to ry here was well developed and showed an increased number of species. Xesserschmidia, Guettarda, Pandanus, Scaevola and young coconuts formed the understory and, i n some cases. verv dense thickets. The ground cover here was also more kxtensive and consis"ted of imxed or pure s t inds of m, Lepturus, Xmbristylis , Triumfetta and Euphorbia. Blue-green algae and mosses covered the s o i l i n many places between the clumps of herbs. A few very poor groves occurred on the three la rger islands on lime sand so i l , but were more common a t the exposed extremities of these islands on f ine coral gravel s o i l and on the small islands of Aonteuma and Abanekeneke F~here the s o i l was a l so coral gravel. These stands consisted of a fe t ,~ widely scat tered t rees , usually old and sometimes infected with bracket fungus. The understory where developed vas a dense thicket of Scaevola and Guettarda. The ground cover consisted of the same herbs l i s t e d above. The e f fec t of the recent year and a half of drought (191i9-50) could be seen near the sou$h end of South Island. The width of the i s land a t t h i s point i s only about 50 f e e t from lagoon beach t o seaward rampr ts . The fresh water l ens must have completely disappeared or become so shrunken t h a t s a l t water penetrated i n t o the so i l , fo r nearly a l l the coconut palms were dead i n t h i s area. Scaevola, Pandanus and Guettarda did )not show any serious effects . t : I . , IS. Clearings A t in tervals along tine length of North Island occurred i r regular c lear- ings. There vere no i?dications as t o the i r origin. Lack of plantings and/or carelessness on the p a r t of the owners may have been the reason f o r the i r existence. The s o i l appeared t o be the same as i n the best coconut groves. In these clearings rrere found sca t te red thickets of Scaevola and Guettarda rrith some Pandanus and an occasional t r e e or clump of Messerschmidia. ilany babai p i t s w h a d been dug throughout t h i s area. Generally one or two desserschn6dia t rees vere found growing a t the edge on the mounds of earth. The dead leaves of t h i s t r ee were gathered, pi led up and l a t e r used as mulch around the Cp-tosperm (babai) plants i n the pi ts . The ground cover consisted of l a rge i r regular cLumps of Sida fa l lax, -Lepturus, Portulaca and Euphorbia chamissonis. I n many cases these patches were of one species only. The bare areas of white sand betr.een them had a broken c r u s t of blue-green algae (~cytonema spp.) with mosses growing on it. Area of Brackish Pools -- - East of the vi l lage of Buariki on Worth Island and a t the northern end of South Island were. two areas of brackish pools. The s o i l was a s i l t y lime type termed "caliche" by Cloud (loc. c i t . ) . Piidely scat tered coconut t rees vere growing there. Tney were dwarfed and did not seem t o bear a heavy crop of coconuts. Pemphis grew around the edges of the pools and i n small thickets. Young coconut t rees occurred i n t he understory, even i n great abundance, on South Island. On North Island only sca t te red c a m s of Fimbristylis were present with crusts of blue-green algae covering much of the bare sand between them. On South Island the ground cover i n this area was more lush and in- cluded Lepturus and Portulaca. Vegetation of the Seaward Ramparts -- Thickets of Scaevola grew on t o p o f the ramparts and showed signs of damage by s a l t spray on the seaward sides. Pandanus a l so greri sparsely along the top of the ramparts or back of the& scaev-er s ingly o r i n groups, and a l so shobred signs of damage by s a l t spray. Ho1.rever some of these plants were able t o produce la rge fruits i n t h i s s i tuat ion. Plesserschmidia was l e s s common on the ramparts %ban Pandanus, occurring now and then on the c r e s t , Cassytha was ra re here, bu t occasionally grew on Scaevola. On the inner slope of the ramparts,-the vegetati0.l was sparse and scattered, with areas of white sandbetween., Few C ~ C O ~ U ~ S grew on the slope, but the groves s t a r t ed a t t he i r base. Scaevola busbe$. grew on the. slopes and dorm i n t o the groves. 'Pandanus, ?iesserschmidia andGuettarda -- were more common on th i s slope than on the r a ~ ~ a r t s . Cassytha was r a r e here, but did parasi t ize Scaevola. Culms of firnbristy-lis, alone or with Lepturus, were spotted here and there. Sida f a l l ax and trio species of Portulaca uere a l so p a r t of t h i s - community. I A t the north end of North Island the rampart vegetation consisted of a pure stand of Pemphis. These shrubs a t ta ined a height varying from10 t o 15 f e e t and formed almost so l id hedge-like thickets, broken by the paths made by the natives going through t o the seaward reef. Vegetation on Gravel 9 -- A t some places on the seaward s ide of the islands, on the northern point of North Island and on Aonteuma, Abanekeneke and Manntabuariki the s o i l consisted of coarse and f ine gravels. These were areas reached by v~aves and probably flooded during periods of storms. A ferr i so la ted Scaevola and Guettarda bushes riere conspicuous against the bareness of the m o m e small Pisonia 'trees were found here, t he i r leaves badly damaged by leaf cut t ing bees. Pandanus and Zorinda c i t r i f o l i a were represented by occasional dwarfed specimens. Lichens were col lected on the bark of Guettarda grouing i n t h i s hab i ta t on Aonteuma. The chief herbs on these areas were both species of Boerhavia, f a l l a x and the two species of Portulaca. The Boerhavia plants were la rge - and the t o t a l spread of single illants reached as much as 8 feet . These - - were dis t r ibuted widely, some growing i n the shade of the Guettarda or Scaevola shrubs, while others were i n the open. The few $Ida plants $?ere - large and shrubby, but shoved yellowing of the foliage. The Portulaca plants were i n i so la ted clumps or as scat tered individuals. Cassytha was common on the Guettarda and Scaevola bushes. Further back from the shore l i n e coarse coral fragments graded i n t o f i ne r i'ragmente. R e vegetation remained primari.ly the same, with the addition of a few i so la ted coconut palms. Premna was common on Aonteuma is land on t h i s f i n e gravel. Lepturus and Phyllanthus %7ere addit ional ground cover plants, but only the l a t t e r r e a l l y comnon. Pisonia Groves Some sca t te red Pisonia t rees erere located on the coral gravel areas on Aonteuma Island and on the north end of North Island, but on Tabuarorae there were trio d i s t i n c t narrow groves of l a rge t rees over 40 f e e t i n height. These groves were on a ridge of indurated phosphatized limesand s o i l and the odor and droppings under these l a rge t rees indicated a big b i rd popula- tion. The nests of the smaller noddy te rn rrere occupied a t the time of our v i s i t on July 25th. The s o i l ??as bare d i rec t ly under the t r ee s except for dead branches and fragments of logs, a l l s o f t and spongy. However, on both sides of t he groves the vepetation was the most luxuriant seen on the a to l l . R e greatestnumber of species were a lso noted here. The predominant understory plant was w, but young breadfruits , papayas, both flowering and bearing f r u i t , Guettarda, Pandanus and young coconuts were a lso present. A wide var ie ty of herbaceous plants covered the ground under t h i s shrub understory. Vegetation around Fish Ponds YL Sand Flats - - - - A t the n o r t h e n d of North Island r a s a large f i s h pond ?ihich ended i n extensive salid t l a t s , pa r t i a l l y flooded a t high t ide. The grea tes t concen- t r a t i o n of mangrove, Rhizophora mucronata, bordered the f i s h ponds and grew - on the pa r t of the sand f l a t s flooded by .the t ides. The only other man- groves observed were 2 trees.. and many small seedlings growing i n the . shallot,^ calcareous sand of the embayment between Aonteuma and North Island. . The wetter sand f l a t s , flooded a t very high t ide , had a heavy stand of mangrove tha t extended almost completely across. The f i s h pond was almost completely encircled by mangrove thickets growing i n the shallow water. - Back of the mangroves on higher ground was a zone of ~ e b h i s , and coconut palms beyond the Pemphis. The bottom of the f i sh pond was covered alnlost completely with t u r t l e grass, Thalassia -- hemprichii. Green algae, ~ ~ o s t l y a species of Nicrodictyon, -. grew as epiphytes on the t u r t l e grass. The highest sand f l a t s appeared t o be dry most of the time and were flooded a t only extreme high t ides. The cen t ra l par t of these Clats 17as bare white sand riddled with burrotrs of r ' i id ler crabs. Pemphis formed a shrub border, but a l l of the shrubs tha t had grorrn f a r out on the f l a t s were dead, only those along the edge Irere s t i l l l iving. Groves of coconut palms grew dorm t o the edge of the f l a t s . Babai p i t s (Taro p i t s ) -- The cul t ivat ion of Cyrtosperma f o r food was quite extensive on the a t o l l . P i t s had been dug t o a depth of 15 f e e t i n the limesand s o i l s i n the center of the three la rge islands. Xany of these xere i n the areas described above as clearings. On Tabuarorae there rrere many abandoned ?its. Since these ikts were generally moist or flooded shallowly with r ~ a t e r from the f resh ,rater lens, algae samples uere take.1 i n many of them. Blue- green algae, Phacus and Rhizoclonium vere common. Complete iden t i f ica t ion of the f resh water algae from these p i t s i s being made. A var ie ty of floriering plants grew i n these p i t s . Eleocharis geniculata and Cyperus laevigatus rrere common, the l a t t e r r7as qu i te abundant i n several abandoned p i t s on Tabuarorae. The only banana plants seen on the a t o l l grew i n one of the babai p i t s . Several l a rge shrubs- of Jussiaea suffrut icosa vere found grotling i n a p i t e a s t of the vi l lage of Aiaki. The p i t s varied i n s ize , but usually were between 25 and 30 f e e t long, vith a width of 10 t o 20 feet . Nr. Richard Turpin, the Br i t i sh Land Com- missioner, to ld me the t i.n some cases a s many as 10 individuals owned l i t t l e plots i n a s ingle pi t . In many p i t s the natives had b u i l t up the humus around the l a r g e s t plants by using mats of coconut leaves t o form a c i rcu la r mil and then had f i l l e d th i s with the leaves of iXesserschmidia and Guettarda along with t he blackish sand found under old t rees of these species. Some of the la rger babai plants were flowering. Only i n a few cases were the plants i n a s ing le p i t of the same size. Vegetation of sand dunes --- On the southern t i p of North Island, the southern t i p of South Island and the northern t i p of Tabuarorae are a s e r i e s of low sand dunes. These areas a r e hot during the middle of the day because o f t h e i r exposure t o the sun. m e white sand between the scat tered shrubs causes an extreme glare. The principal shrubs were Scaevola, Guettarda and Pemphis. These were the only shrubs present i n t h i s community on R'orth but on South Island and Tabuarorae Suriana, Sophora and Terminalia were a l so grow- ing. Suriana, however, was common only on Tabuarorae. Cassytha had parasi t ized a number of these shrubs. Grasses and herbs were rare and s i w e the sands were apparently sh i f t i ng from time to time, no moss nor algae were present. Sixby species of vascular plants tiere collected or observed by the author on Onotoa between 3un.e 211th and August 30th, 1951. I n the following species list is included a shor t account of t he occurrence and abundance of the plants. Native use is included whenever observed or learned. The author's collection number follotis the name of the i s land on which collec- t ions were made. Native names obtained are included only i f supplied by more than one authori6y. The first and second s e t of plants a r e deposited i n the U. S. National Herbarium and Yne Herbarium of the Bernice P. Bishop I4useum a t Honolulu. The other duplicates a r e i n the Chrysler Herbarium a t Rutgers University, h?ew York Botanical Garden, Gray Herbarium a t Harvard, University of California Herbarium a t Berkeley and the pr ivate herbarium of D r . P. R. Fosberg, Angiospermae : Nonocotyledonae PAN DANACEAE Pandanus tectorius Sol. North Island 83hlr, 81i12. A l i s t of native names supplied by our cook, Baru is given below. He a l so supplied information on the use made of some of these var ie t ies by the natives. te aramar.u ) t e aramarieba ) t e bakororso t e ulonas t e aramoroia both with small phalanges, leaves used for mat wea&ng. t e iribaikawa t e t ina t e iritawatar.~a - t a l l s t r a igh t trunk, used for supports i n house build- t e aranteba ing. te annabai t e i r i k i r i t e i r i a u r i a r i a - l a rge f ru i t ed variety, b l a c k i s h c a s t on leaves This is one of the three important plants i n the native economy. It grows on limesand s o i l s under the coconuts and on the f i n e gravels. S a l t damaged specimens grev on the ramparts and a ferr stunted ones on the coarse gravels. A t one spot on North Island, new plantings had been made by taking a crotm from a branch, tying the leaves together and planting these cut t ings ra ther deep i n t o the so i l . 'Pnese new plantings were i n i r regular rows i n the shade of coconut trees. The r ipe f r u i t i s lcnovrn as " t e tou". The f r u i t is taken apar t and cooked, then the pulp is pressed from the base of the phalanges and spread on Guet'carda leaves t o dry i n the sun. Duri'lg the drying process the mass or pudding i s usually covered with f l i e s . It i s ca l led " te tuaeu. If t h i s pudding i s mixed with water, as a soup, it is then ca l led "te kabubu". l 'halassia hemprichii (Ehrenb.) Ascherson Lagoon 8188. Large beds of t h i s aquatic plant were found i n the north end of the cen t ra l lagoon along the shore of North Island a t the v i l l age of Taneang. The plants were deeply rooted i n the limesand bottom and the leaves were only about 6 inches long. These beds were covered a t lorr t ide . The plants grew so densely tha t they caused the deposition of sand and f i n e silt. The green alga, 1Iicrodictyon, and a small gelatinous red alga were very abundant, both attached and f loa t ing among these weeds. Halimeda stuposa a lso grew i n these areas. 'Ihe bottom of the f i s h pond a t the northern end of North Island rim almost completely covered with S a l a s s i a and many f i s h and in- vertebrates were present i n the weed patches and on the individual plants. Genchrus echinatus L. " t e anti". n'orth Island 8386; South Island 8206. Found i n j u s t trro s i t e s o ; ~ the a-toll: thick so l id stands are common along the road ~ o r t h oof the vi l lage of Aiaki, and several s'ingle plants were gr'orling along the road on North Island a t o w supply dump, south of the Government area. It seems cer ta in th i s is a recent intro-lucti.on and vill probably spread un&isputed over the atoll before long. The native name given i s the one used i n the northern a t o l l of itakin and rfas supplied by Jim Redfern, our in te rpre te r from Makin. Lepturus repens re or st.) R. Br. North Island 8019, 8&5h; South Island 8212. The' commonest grass on the a t o l l , found on a l l the islands, the l a r g e s t stands on the limesand so i l , bu t r a r e l y forming a turf . Gn the poorer so i l s , only widely scat tered culms were present and usually i n association r \~i th Fimbristylis cymosa. Scattered clumps grew on the sealrard beach ramparts. The linost vigorous plants were found along the lagoon roads. Stenotaphrum micranthum (Desr .) Hubb. North Island a55, 8155. The second most important grass on the a to l l , r e s t r i c t ed t o the three l a rge islands. It was found growing on limesand s o i l i n t he dense shade of coconut groves. It rjas a lso ra ther common around the edges of the babai p i t s i n f u l l sun. Many of the stands of t h i s grass were dense and continuous i n coqtras t t o those of Lepturus. I n the grove north of the Protestant Church, i n the v i l l age area of Buariki on North Island was found the heaviest and la rges t stand anywhere on the a t o l l , covering almost completely a $acre t ract . Eragrostis amabilis (L.) 1'. & A. " t e uteute n i mwaanetl. North I s la rd 8130, 8339; South Island 8207. Found a s a turf a t various places along the v i l l age road on botht lor th and South Islands. Also common along paths i n the center and north end of Forth Island. On Tabuarorae i t grew on a narroti piece of high ground between the lagoon and the shrubby growth on the sand f l a t s . Growing mixed !&th Cenchrus on South Island. Iherever t h i s grass tias seen the s o i l seemed t o be ve t and dark in color with a g rea t amount of humus. It was usually found only on the f i ne r s o i l s i n which there were few or no gravel par t ic les . Eragrostis ra7hitney-i Fosb. " t e uteute n i mwaane". North Island 8090, 8316. Confined to B!orth Island. Growing on limesand s o i l s along the lagoon road and along a path i n a sunny area i n the center of North Island. Common rrhere it was found. Cyperus laevigatus L. Tabuarorae 8224. Collected only on t h i s i s land i n an abandoned babai p i t . The bottom of the p i t had a very shallow layer of water and the s o i l Ts7aS held firmly by the roots and rhizomes of the plants. Formerly it was used f o r weaving. Eleocharis geniculata (L,) R. & S. Yorth Island. 8158, 8337; South Island 8210. Grovnng i n some o f the babai p i t s on North and South Islands. Not abundant i n any of the pi ts . Fimbris t y l i s cymosa R. Brom "te uteute n i aiine". North Island @21, 8129, 82'81; South is land 8208. A very common sedge on a l l the islands of the a to l l , growing a s scat tered plants, never as a turf. iviany of the culms on the beach ramparts and inner s loae of the r a m ~ a r t s were dr ied UD and anoarentlv dead. Pure stands r?ere frequently seen i n the coconut gEoves Long thewlagoon road, a t other places Fimbristylis was growing mixed with Lepturus. Around the brackish pools i n the area of ltcaliche" s o i l on North Island th i s was the only vascular plant forming ground cover. PALiIACUE Cocos nucifera L. 11& n i l ~ - North Island 8373;. 8411. , , . Distribution of coconut palms on the a t o l l has been discussed i n describing vegetation and need not be repeated here. R e coconut is cer- t a in ly the s t a f f of l i f e of the Onotoan. It supplies him with food, toddy, shel ter , rope, matting, flooring, o i l and medicine. The dr ied product of the nut is so ld t o the l oca l cooperative trading company where commodities from the outside world can be purchased. The gathering of the "toddy" Tias one of the most fascinating aspects of the coconut cnlture. Thy cer ta in t rees were selected and others dis- regarded f o r toddy co1lect:ing I ?ever did learn. Iiovever, it was s a i d t ha t some t rees produced more than others. Toddy t rees could be spotted, since notches were cu t on the lower par t of the trunk. The flower buds of these t rees vere t i e d shut t o keep them from opening, then the t i p s were cu t off , The dripping sap from these cu t t i p s was &ained in to a bo t t l e or empty coconut s h e l l by using a l e a f l e t of coconut as a gutter. Each morning and evening the young me? or boys climbed the toddy t rees and repl.aced the f i l l e d containers with empty ones, making a f resh cu t on the bud each time. The gatherer s a t on the pe t io le of one of the la rge leaves and accompanied h i s labor with singing. To gather toddy and not s ing rrould cause i t t o spoi l . It was unearthly, bu t beautiful t o hear these voices from the t r e e tops a t dam and dusk. A l l the singers had f i n e voices. Usually the songs were unfamiliar, but llFron the Halls of ibntezuma", "Si lent Night, Holy %lightH, "You are ;.iy Sunshine", - and some other familiar tunes with Gilbertese xords were a lso heard a t these times. The t o w is used fresh, mixed with water and i s then cal led l%arariew. I f the toddy is boiled t o keep i t from fermenting i t becomes a brown syrup and then mixed with water as a refreshing drink it i s ca l led llkamaimai". It has the f lavor of coca cola t ha t has become somet~hat f l a t from standing. I f the toddy is allowed t o ferment, which requires special permission, it becoines highly intoxicating. T*!e saw i t s e f f ec t upon a young man who passed out %bile dancing a t one of the feasts . A bee t le of genus Sessinia gets i n t o the toddy and if not noticed and removed causes a painful inflammation of the urinary t r ac t , Other native names associated with the coconut are as follows: t e ben --- a r ipe coconut t e r i k i -- a germinating coconut t e mormoto - a drinking coconut Fritchardia sp. ? A single plant of a fan-palm growing i n f ron t of the Government House on Horth Island. Cyrtosperma chamissonis ( ~ c h o t t . ) Nerr. " t e babai" North Island 8172, 8157, 8159; South Island 8211. Zxtensively cu l t iva ted i n p i t s dug i n the limesand s o i l to a depth of 10 to 15 feet . This was the only species found i n cul t ivat ion for the s ta rch stored i n the roots. Plants of a l l sizes, some i n bloom, were found i n t'ne pi ts . The natives build a c i rcu la r wall of coconut matting around indiv.idua1 plants and build up a compost, using the leaves of Messerschmidia and Guettarda mixed with darlcened limesand s o i l f ron under the older t rees of these species. The land tenure of these p i t s was ra ther interest ing. The families using the p i t s usually did not own the land i n which they were dug, bu t per- mission had been granted t o t h e i r awes to r s several generations before. fie- quently, as many as 10 different families had plantings i n one p i t , none of which was la rger than 20x50 f ee t ; most were smaller. The only abandoned p i t s seen were on the eastern s ide of Tabuarorae. Since the p i t s were dug to a depth t h a t would in t e r sec t the water table, algae, pr incipal ly blue-greens and Rhizoclonium, covered the wet s o i l or grew i n the shallow water. One p i t had a bloom of Phacus ~ leuronec tes i n it. XosquitoeS and dra on f l i e s bred i n t h x t s , as indicated i n the repor t on the animals fidlooul, 19%). ni4ARYLL IDACEAE' Crinum asia t icuk L. - North Island @Oh. Is'lanted as an ornamental around the vi l lage houses, but not common. Also found planted i n one of the cemeteries. Very few specimens were flowering during our s tay on the a t o l l . Observed only once on the a to l l : There were three t rees i n one of the babai p i t s on Sorth Island. The plants Irere small and yellori green i n color. I n contrast , banana was common i n the vi l lages on Makin Atoll i n the Northern Gilberts. Artocarpus a l t i l i s '(park,) Fosb. " te mai ". Nortln Island 8299. Breadfruit t rees were planted on each s ide of the v i l l age s t r e e t s along the lagoon shore. Hany of t he t rees were small. Young t rees were planted i n a c i rcu la r well l i ned with reef rock and the roots covered with humus and dead leaves. Coconut matting was used t o cover the s o i l , a l l o w ing the young t rees t o grow between the mats. Nany of the t rees i n Aiaki vi l lage were small and poor and some of them were dead. The l a r g e s t t rees were i n the v i l l age of Tekawa, which is located on the widest pa r t of North Island. A 1 1 the t r ee s along the s t r e e t i n the v i l l age ofTabuarorae were dead. The natives reported t h i s t o be the r e s u l t of the 19119-195'0 drought. The f r u i t s seen were small, wrinkled and contained large seeds. On the i s land of Tabuarorae, breadfrui t t rees of several s i ze s Tiere seen i n the luxuriant vegetation along the edges of the Pisonia grove. This area was underlain with phosphate deposits, a t t r i bu t ed t o the birds nesting i n the Pisonia t rees . These groves were formerly more extensive and covered the area where the brea&uits riere now growing. Ficus t inc tor ia Forst. - 'I t e bero". North Island @57, 8128; Tabuarorae 8232. Small t rees were found grotsing on the three la rge islands. From t h e i r d i s t r ibu t ion i t seemed apparent t h a t most of them had been planted. These t rees were gro~ring around the edges of many of the babai p i t s and, i n one case, i n an abandoned pit . Others xere planted around the houses i n the vil lages. On North Island a ror! had been planted a t regular in te rva ls along a path through the coconut grove. On Tabuarorae they formed small thickets around the Pisonia grove. 'Ihe f r u i t s uere small and used a s food. neu rya ruderal is (Forst.) Gaud. ex Wedd. " t e nekeneke" . b!orth Island 81L7, 8336; Tabuarorae 8228. Common only a t one spot on North Island, around a copra hut. Very common i n many stands under the Pisonia t rees on Tabuarorae. A native g i r l brought specimen 8336 to camp t o trade f o r c igaret tes . I presume these plants came from Worth Island. N YC TAGINACEAE Boerhavia diffusa L. " t e wao". North Island 8037, 8039, e085, 8106, 813b, 83LO; South Island 8198; Abanekeneke 8I.b. A common plant of the seaward s ide of the islands, growing on both the f i ne and coarse coral gravel so i l s . Frequently found on the beach ramparts, sometimes under dead or l i v i n g Scaevola shrubs. It was very common a l l over the coral gravel of the old vi l lage s i t e on Abaneksnelce. In some cases the sprawling plants spread a distance of 4 f e e t i n a l l directions from the root. Both florrers and f r u i t were present on most plants. The flowers were pink i n most cases, but a few of the plants assigned t o tiiis species had trhi'r;e flowers, These plants shoved some inter- media-te chsracters between t h i s and E. tetrandra and may be hybrids. (BILL 8 m . This arld B. tetrandra a r e used as food f o r hogs. - B. tetrandra Forster - " t e 1,~aonnansi." . North Island W84, 8151; South Island 8202; Tabuarorae 8223. !be r a r e r of the two species found on the a to l l . Growing on cora l gravels and boulder ridges of the seaward s ide of North and South Islands. Dn Tabuarorae, hot.rever, it was very common on the limesand s o i l s i n the thin coconut groves. EZowers and f r u i t were present on most plants. 'Ibe flowers were vhite i n t h i s species. Pisonia grandis R. Bro~m " te bulta". Aonteuma 8082; Forth Island 8152; Tabuarorae 8229. Two long narror,! groves of these t rees about hO f e e t t a l l were found on a ridge of indurated phosphatized limesand s o i l (Cloud 1952) on Tabuarorae. The only other specimens seen were a few t rees on the north end of Aonteuma on 'coral gravel and two small groups of t rees on ~Xorth Island. One of these gy.ou& .oCthe nprth t i p o f t h e I s l a n d ~ g r e n on coral gravel. and the other groilp was near the brackish pools on the seaward s ide of the island. The t rees on Aonteya and North Island had leaves badiy damaged by leaf-cutt ing . . bees. The la rge t rees on Tabuarorae had large buttressed trunks; many would have required a t l e a s t three men with arms extended t o completely encircle them. The wood was very sof t . The odor of ammonia was strong under these trees, due t o the excrement from the la rge colony of nesting terns. The most luxuriant veeetation on anv of the islands was on e i the r s ide of these *groves and consisxed of e,papaya, Morinda -- c i t r i f o l i a , breadfrui t saplings, with a heavy ground cover of Flewya and grasses. Bougainvillea spectabi l is Willd. The record f o r th i s p1ant:is b a s e d b w t h e appearance of the f l o r~e r s i n a t t l e i f t worn by one of the g i r l s on August 16 th . . On questioning her, it 37as learned t h a t the plant grew i n the yard of the house assigned t o the native preacher of the v i l l age of Buariki. A cul t ivated ornamental planted around some of the houses i n the vi l lage of Aiaki on South Island. PORTULACKCEAE Portulaca lu t ea Solander - " t e mtea". North Island 8322, 8073, 8089, 83h1, 8k5L The la rger leaved of the two species growing on the a t o l l . Great var ia t ion was noticed i n the coloring of the sterns of these plants, some uere red. , '. Growing on limesand and coral gravel s o i l s and i n the groves, clear- ings, and on beach ramparts and t h e i r .inner slope. Observed on a l l the islands of the a to l l . In places on coral gravels it formed thick stands. The natives reported t h a t i t vas used as pig food and as human food i n times of famine. Portulaca samoensis V. Poelln. "te nteatt . North Island 8023, 8072, 8107, 8281r, 8395; South Island 8199. Distribution much the same as the other species and used by the native population f o r the same purpose. Apparently no d is t inc t ion is made by them between the species. LAURACEAE Cassstha f i l i fo rmis L. "te ntanini". North Island 8056, e058, 8&l. A paras i t i c member of the family having a suwerficial resemblance t o dodder (kuscuta). It was found grow& pr inkpa l l ; on Scaevola s e ~ i c e a and Guettarda speciosa, occasionally attached t o Euphorbia chamissonis and pewhis. One plant was found growing on Suriana mapitima, on the is land of Tabuarorae. Common along the beach r a m ~ a r t . r a r e r on the inner s l o ~ e . bu t - . frequent i n the sunny open areas i n the 'center of the l a rge islands. Wide- spread i n the a t o l l wherever the hos t plants grew. notmrs and f r u i t were present during the expedition's s t a y on the a t o l l . Hernandia sonora L. te nimaa repmrepwa" . South Island 8195. Cne small t ree , possibly the only one on the a t o l l , found along the lagoon road south of the v i l l age of Aiaki on South Island. The wood was forrnerly used for outriggers, Delonix reg ia (Boj .) Raf. - " t e tau". North Island 8296. One small t ree , 6 f e e t t a l l , growing beside a house i n the v i l l age of Buarilci, North Island. Flor.iers and f r u i t were not present. This was the only specimen seen on the a t o l l . Sophora tomentosa L. " t e niltamaatuutuu". South Island 8192; Tabuarorae 81%. A comaon shrub on the narrow southern t i p of South Island where the coconut t rees had been k i l l e d by the drought. Growing on dune sands. The only other occurrence was on Tabuarorae as a member of the shrub cor~nunity on the sand f l a t s and border j -~g the i n l e t s a t t he northeast end of the island. Flowers and. f r u i t were present on most of t he shrubs. SURIANACEAE (often included i n the SI5ARUBnCEA.Z) Suriana maritima L. Tabuarorae 8226, 8308. This shrub was common only on Tabuarorae. I t grew on dune sand on the shore of the lagoon and as a member of the shrubby th icke t on the f l a t s a t the northeast corner of the island. Fair ly common as a member of the under- s to ry of the coconut groves on th i s pa r t of the island. Young seedlings t,rere present. The only other specimens seen were on the lagoon shore i n the vil lage of Buariki on iNorth Island. Euphorbia chamissonis Boiss. ,,~... . Forth Island 8059, 8365. mis plant, xiti1 Sida fa l lax , formed 1073 shrubby thickets i n the center - of the la rge islands and i n many clearings i q the coconut plantations. In the shade of %he groves on tine f i ne limesand s o i l , scat tered plants of t h i s species +)ere frequently the only ground cover. In other groves i t grew with Lepturus and ~ i d a t o form the ground cover. It was second i n importance t o Sida. - The n a E s made no use of th i s plant. Euphorbia pros t r a t a A i t . North Island m92, 8146. .. Not a common plant, but abundant vhere it grew. It was the dominant ground cover i n the deep shade of a coconut grove a t the north end of North Island. The coral gravel spread around the v i l l age houses tias usually kept c lear of vegetation, but i n the vi l lage of Aiaki on South Island t h i s plant m s abundant i n a number of these gravel yards. PhylLanthus n i r u r i L. North Island 8087, 8148; ~abuarorae 8231. Growing i q the coconut groves o?, the three l a rge islands, b u t not a common member of the ground cover. Found on lime s o i l s and f ine coral gravels. Restricted t o the vi l lage areas along the lagoon. A t the extreme northern end of North Island it was confined t o an area of s ca t t e r ed copra huts. One 'of the comnon herbs found i n -the Pisonia groves. Dodonaea viscosa (L.) Jacq. t e kaiporav. Aonteuma N83; North island 8303. Found growing as a low shrub i n the thin coconut grove on Aonteuma. Later, several plants were observed i n the vi l lage of Buariki. Used i n scenting the o i l f o r the hair . Triumfetta procumbens Forster te kiaou" . North Island mh0, @9&, 8105, 8131; Tabuarorae 82% Fai r ly common on the la rger islands. It was found growing on the ramparts on dune sand and was a l so ra ther common on sanay s o i l i n the cen t ra l portion of the islands. In coconut groves it frequently greliup between and over the l i t t e r scat tered on the ground; some of the runners were as long as four f e e t . It was i n flower and f ru i t during the period of our s tay on the island. Used medicinally by the natives for poultices and drunk as tea during ch i ld b i r th . Also reported used a s soap. Hibiscus rosa-sinensis L. - These plants riere reported as growing i n the compound of one of Yne native preachers, but were not located. On August 13th one of the native g i r l s was observed with these flo5~ers i n her hair . Hibiscus tiliaceus_ 1,. --.- Pi orth Is!.ad 03C0, 8306, 8kh9. Cnly two groups of these t rees were found o n the atoll. and both r e r e on Nortll Island. The t rees growing along the lagoon shore i n the v i l l age of Riiwiki were the l a r g e s t and riere i n f u l l bloom during our v i s i t . The othe:? g ~ o u p of t-ses were a t the south end along the road i n the v i l l age of Temao. Here '%here was one old t ree surrounded by many small ones. The flor.iers, yellow with red centers, were used a s ornaments i n the ha i r of the vil lagers. Sida f a l l a x blalp. -- "te kaiao" and " t e Itaura". North Island e020, e088, 8202. One of the most widely dis t r ibuted ground cover plants on the a to l l , growingat some places to a height of 2 feet . It was found on a l l types of s o i l , but was most abundant on the limesand s o i l s under the coconut trees. Plants growing on the cora l gravels were usually' chlorotic. Flo?,:ers and f r u i t were present during the whole period of our s t ay on the islands. The larvae of the common but te r f ly , (Hypolimnas bolina) , were abundant on the foliage. The floxers rrere the favor i te f o r rmking the head " le i s" t h a t everyone wore. Children f o l l o w i ~ g along with the co l lec tor made " l e i s " as they went, and the author ra re ly came back from an expedition without wearing one con- t r ibuted by them. Sometimes the plants a r e used as pa r t of the compost f o r the babai p i t s . Caloph~llum inophyllum L. " t e i t a i " , North Island 8127; South Island 8203. This t ree was ra re on the a t o l l . Tnere were two l a rge t rees i n a coconut grove on North Island. Another s ingle t r ee about 25 f e e t t a l l was located e a s t of the lagoonroad a t the south end of South Island. Flomrs and f r u i t were lacking. The t rees were observed i n bloom on the Atoll of IJajuro i n the '!iarshall Islands on the t r i p t o Onotoa. The l m b e r was formerly used i n canoe building. Because of tlhe present scarcity, i t as now being used only f o r canoe paddles. A brown skipper bu t t e r f ly rras caught on the leaves of, t h i s t r ee and another observed fljring about. These insects were observed nothere e l s e on the a t o l l and were probably spec i f ic t o t h i s plant. CARICACEAE Carica papaya L. North Island 8150, 8153; Tabuarorae 8230. Planted around a few of the houses i n the v i l l ages ; but not a common cul t ivated plant. tdany small plants were found around an i so la ted copra hut a t the north end of North Island. The l a r g e s t number were growing i n and around the Pisonia groves on Tabuarorae. The plants were i n flower and f r u i t during our s t a y on the island. B e natives so ld us the f r u i t which :.re a t e for breakfast. They m r e of good qual i ty and quite good flavor. LY THRACEAE Pemphis acidula Fors t. -- " t e ngea". North Island 8036, e056, 8086, 8315. One of the common shrubs of the a to l l , growing on sand dunes a t the ends of the la rger islands and on the gravel s o i l s ' o f the smaller ones. In some places it formed thickets on top of the seaward ramparts. It uas coriunon a l so along the lagoon shore away from the vil lages. On North Island i t formed a complete zone between the Rhizophora and the coconut palms a t the margin of the f i s h ponds and a l so grew on the t i d a l f l a t s a t the upper end of the ponds. Shrubs t h a t had grown f a r out o? these t i d a l f l a t s were now dead, probably from the higher s a l i n i t y resul t ing from the drought of the l a s t year and a half. I n t r ~ o areas of brackish ponds, one on North Island and one on South Island, Penphis formed the dominant shrub of the understory. Flowers and f r u i t were present during our s t a y on the island. A Catocala-like moth (Achaea janata) was very abundant on foliage. Cassytha f i l i formis grew on Pemphis occasionally. Jussiaea suffruticosa L. South Island 8209. Several large shrubs grew i n a wet babai p i t e a s t of the v i l l age of Aiaki. These were the only specimens seen. The flowers were yellow and were present on the same shrubs with r i p e seed pods. Barringtonia a s i a t i ca (L.) ICum -. "te usill. South Island 8205. One small immature t rce i n a shallow p i t on South Island, south of the v i l l age of Aiaki. The leaves were large, dark green and glossy with shor t red petioles, No f r u i t nor blossoms were observed on Onotoa. Ripe f r u i t were seen on Xakin, Gilbert Islands, on the t r i p to Onotoa. One afternoon i n the Uaneaba (Community house) a t Aiaki, as I was passing around plant specimens i n order t o secure the native names, one of the group of. natives told the i n t e rp re t e r t ha t t h i s t r e e was the only one on the a t o l l and.rias on his land. He added t h a t the young f r u i t was used t o poison. f i s h and, i n the . o ld days, t o poison people. Rhizophora mucronata Lam. North Island m51, 8098; Aonteuma 8077. Confined t o %he north end of Vorth Island and an embayment between it and Aonteuma. The l a rges t s tand surrounded the f i s h ponds and the t i d a l f l a t s a t the upper end of tlie ponds. Only tr?o small mature t rees were growing i n the Aonteuna embayment, but there were many small seed- l ings a l l along the lagoo? shore. The t rees rrere i n bloom and also had f r u i t r r i t h pendent radicles. Terminalia samoensis Rech. " t e ukina". Aonteuma e081; South Island 8191; Tabuarorae 8225. A fey$ uidely scat tered specimens of shrub s i z e found only on the three islands l i s t e d above. Tney were grorriqg on dune sand or coral gravel s o i l s , The f r u i t on the Aonteuma specimens rrere green on July 9th. The f r u i t collected on South Island on July 23rd, and Tabuarorae on July 26th were scar le t . One large t r ee grew on the seaward rampart on South Island. The f r u i t s were used as decorations and i n making l l l e i s l l . Ap- parently they were not eaten. Polyscias guilf oylei (Cogn . & ~iarch. ) Bailey " t e butatora". North Island 8305. Planted i n hedges. Observed i n the vi l lages of Buariki, Taneang- Tekawa and Aiaki. The leaves were green and vhi te and the dr ied plants were very fragrant. Catharanthus roseus (L.) G. Don. " te buraroti" . North Island 8279. One of the common ornamentals planted around the vi l lage houses. The white and purple flowered va r i e t i e s were observed. Nerium oleander L. North Island 8302. Che small shrub a t a v i l l age house i n Buariki. The natives knerr it contained a poisonous substance. Ipomoea - tuba (Schlecht) G. Don " t e rulcu". llorth Island 8338; South Island 8197. This plant ?!as found only a t the two s i t e s represented by the col- lect ions . It xas most abundant on South Island near the seaward side, where it r.7as very common and formed a dense tangle on t rees , shrubs and ground. On Worth Island i t tras gror.ring on the coral gravel s o i l of the rampart and vas not abundant. ?Ieither f r u i t nor florrers were observed. Reportedly used as medicine t o a t t r a c t the g i r l s . The cormnon Ipomoea pes-caprae so abundant or. the i s land of Betio a t Tara~ra Atoll and on --a ot'ner lslands vis i ted, was missing here. Piesserschmidia araentea (L.f.1 I. il. Johnston --- "te rent!. i-onteuma 8076; Worth Island 8156, 8279. A common t r ee of the atoll, graving on a l l the islands except the very small ones. Frequently found i n the coconut groves and a common member of the understory on Tabuarorae. It was more abundant along the seaward ram- par t and along the edges of the clearings. One t o several of these t rees always grev on the edges of the babai p i t s . The leaves riere col lected and used for coinpost around the babai plants. It grew on sand and gravel soi ls . It was i n flower and f r u i t during our stay. I;esserschmidia was commonly i d e s t e d with a ca te rp i l la r , probably the l a rva l s tage of a small Mymphalid but terf ly , and also the colorfu.1 moth Utetheisa. ?;he moth was usually a t r e s t on the underside of the leaves. Lantana camara L . Tnis plant was not collected. It was growing around one or two vil lage houses. It was used by the g i r l s as ha i r decoration. Clerodendrum inerme (L.) Gaertn. I t t e inato". Aonteuma ma; North Island 8298. Small shrubs which tended t o be vine-like, were growing on Aonteuma. The.y were i n thickets of Guettarda and Scaevola and under the coconuts. The s o i l here was coral gravel. Neither f l o ~ r e r s nor f r u i t vere present. Tney were a lso found around som of the houses i n the v i l l age of Buariki. 'The flov~ers were used i n making "leis". Premna obtusifol ia R. Br. "te aango". A common shrub of the south end of Ronteuma, growing on coral gravel so i l . 'he only other occurrence vas on the lagoori shore of South Island, south of t he vi l lage of Aiaki. Here some of the shrubs grew to a height of f i f t een feet . F l o ~ ~ e r s and f r u i t riere present during our s tay on the a to l l . i'remna ~7as reported t o be used as a aerficine. Some of the leaves showed damage by leaf-cuttAng bees. Physalis lanceifol ia Nees Morth Island 8993, 8149. . A fer? plants growing beside a copra shack a t the northern end of Sorth Island. 1'0 other specimens seen, both collections being made a t the same s i t e . Flowers and f r u i t were present. , Russelia equisetifortnis Scblecht & Cham. te kaibaun". North Island 8167, 8307, 8387. A common plant around the Residency and the v i l l age homes. Collectio'ns were made only on Worth Island, but the plant was present on South Island and Tabuarorae. The s c a r l e t flowers were highly prized for l t l e i s l t . Pseuderanthemum car ru thers i i Seem. I'te rotill . North Island W38, 8301. Commonly cul t ivated and growing around the houses i n a l l the vil lages. In the cemeteries a t the northern and souther? t i p s of 'North Island, a number of graves had these shrubs growing a t one end. Two va r i e t i e s were obseme.d,,,:Che var ie ty had purplish-green leaves, dark twigs and magenta flowers. The other.-variety had:green leaves and l i g h t colored t@.gs. No flovrers were observed on the latter. Guettarda speciosa L. " t e ur i" . ' North Island m41, 82e0, 8333; Aonteuma @79. Second i n importance t o ~ c a e v o l a as an understory t r ee and th icke t former. It was found on a l l types 'of s o i l s on a l l the islands, including the very small coral gravel i s lands between North and South Islands. Flot~ers and f r u i t were present during the time $7e were. on the. a t o l l . It was frequently parasit ized by Cassgtha f i l i formis . The fragrant flowers were used by the natives for " le is" . The women spread a dozen or so leaves on the ground on which t o dry the pandanus :pulp. The skin from the f r u i t of t h i s plant, with a pa r t of the roo t of Scaevola, were s a i d t o be used t o cure venereal disease. These were crushed together, the juice put i n to a drinkin8 coconut and t h i s mixture drunk by the patient. One treatment i s sa id to be effective. ivlorinda c i t r i f o l i a L. libmekeneke BlGk, 81kG; Tabuarorae 8227. This plant was found gror.ring pr incipal ly belo1.7 the ramparts on the seaward s ide of the islands. Also a member of the Pisonia grove community. It most frequently grew on coral gravel so i l s . Signs of damage by s a l t spray were evident on the small is land of Nanntabuariki. The t rees on North Island had been attacked by the leaf-cut t ing bees, A large Sphingid ca te rp i l la r , larva of the day-flying hawk moth, was found on the fol iage of the t rees i n the cemetery on North Island. The t ree was a l so planted around the houses i n the vi l lages . Both flowers and f r u i t re re present during our s t a y on the island. The f r u i t i s used as food i n times of famine, but apparently not highly regarded or used a t other times. GOOD231 IACEAE Scaevola ser icea Jah l " te mao". North Island e024, 8283, 8396. Tne commonest understory and thicket former on the a t o l l . It was present on a l l the is lands and grew on a l l types of s o i l . It formed dense thickets i n the neglected coconut groves. On the seaward ramparts i t formed s o l i d thickets a t many places and these plants shoved a con- siderable amount of k i l l i ng by s a l t spray. Web! shoots, however, a r i s e d i rec t ly from the roo t stock. It was i n flower and f r u i t during the time we were on the a t o l l and was frequently parasi t ized by Cassgtha f i l i fo rmis . Vernonia ciner.ea (L.) Less. " t e waonnansi" South Island 8193. This small composite was found growing along the lagoon road both north and south of the v.illage of Aiaki, South Island. It Tias f a i r l y common i n t h i s area, but not found a t any other location on the a to l l . The flowers were l i g h t purple. PTERIDOPHYTA No members of t h i s group of plants grew on Onotoa. Polypodium s c o l e r ~ n d r i a %7as common on i:iaj uro Atoll, iiarshall Islands. I,Y/5/51. The mosses and liverworts col lected on the expedition to Onotoa were determined by Dr. 1-1. A. i l i l l e r and samples retained i n h i s col- lection. Duplicate specimens Tiere dis t r ibuted t o the Herbaria indicated above. Because of the i r regular amount of r a i n f a l l on Onotoa, with long periods of drought, Bryophytes were not common on the a t o l l . flosses grew on the lime-sand soil: along roads and paths and on sail bare of vascular plants. The heaviest growth was i n the shade of t rees . Host . . of the moss patches were surrounded. by a thick growth of t e r r e s t r i a l blue-green algae. Black t u f t s of Scytonema ocellatwn frequently were mixed with the moss plants and suggested the presence of another species. Only one species. of moss was found and no l iverworts were col lected on Onotoa. Dixon (1927: Jour. Bob. 65:254.) has previously recorded Brachymenium indicum (Doz. & Piott.) Bry. Jav. a s occurring on k o t o a , but t h i s species did not show up i n the collections. Ni l le r indicates the one species found t o be B r a c h ~ n i u m melanothecium ( c . l:i&l.) Jaeg. -. and s t a t e s t h a t it i s widespread i n Oceania. The fo l lo~f ing col lect ions were made: North Island e060, 8061, 8095, 8176. South Island 8213. Tabuarorae 8241. @I the t r i p out to Cnotoa from Ihajale in Atoll, there were op- por tuni t ies t o co l l ec t on the various a t o l l s vis i ted. These collections are irlcluded beiov. MUSC I Hajuro i i toll , iiarshall Islands. 8002. Growing on the trunk of a palm t rce i n a shaded area, Rogeron Island, ~~S.A.8/51. 8621. Graving on a breadfrui t tree, Rogeron Island. ~1/18/51. KwajaLein Atoll , Xarshall Islands. @Ol. Base of palm tree. liwadak Island. Species widespread i n Oceania. (Niller , 1953, p. 5 ) . Calmperos thyridioides Broth. lffijuro Atoll, liarshall Islands. @05. Gn ro t ten uood i n a Scaevola thickets. Uligalc Island. vr/lsin. . ., - Previously reported from Arno Atoll and other places i n the iiarshalls as C. moluccense by l%.ller, 1953, p. b. ( i i i l l e r personal correspondence) . - HEPATICAE Archile jeunea mariana (Gott.) St. Ihajale in Atoll , i.iarshal1 Islands. B O O . On the bark of Fisonia t rees . Fa i r ly coimon on the hori- zontal branches. Wooded center of Kwadak Island. VI'/l7/Sl. kcording t o ;iiller (Correspondence) t h i s is a ra ther depauperate specimen but f a l l s within t l ~ e range of the species. lkdespread i n Oceania. Hygrole j ewea vesicata (idiitt.) Stephani ?4ajuro Atoll, i iarshall Islands. mO3. On the trunk of a palm tree. Rogeron Island. ~1/18/51. l l i l l e r s t a t e s (Corresnondence) t h a t he believes t h i s s ~ e c i e s belongs i n cheiloleje&ea. The material from tlw Marshalls i; s l i g h t l y smaller than the type. The feu l ichens found have been turned over t o Dr. George A. Llano, L a x l ~ l l Field, 'ilabama, f o r determination. These collections ?rere made i n dense t l~ icke ts on the bark of Guettarda, Norinda, Pandanus and coconut trees. The fungus 'ollections made on Onotoa have been turned over t o Dr. Donald P. Rogers a t the )Ierr Pork Eotanical Garden and determinations have not been ~ilade a t t h i s date. A ilurnber of species of bracket fungi were col lected on ro t t i ng logs. Tne coinmones.t was a red polypore. A r e t i cu l a t e orange slime rnold was found on decayj.ng panclanus leaves. A white g i l l e d fungus was collected several times from the base of l iv ing coconut palms. Fungus beet les arere present i n some of the specimens collected. So i l Flora Samples of s o i l were collected on the a t o l l and brought back t o the Department of i~icrobiology a t Rutgers University. me analysis of the f l o ra of t l e s e s o i l s was made through the kindness of Dr. R. L. Starkey and Dr. Hubert A. Lechevalier. I quote from Dr. Starkey's re- port: Vhese represent determinations for nunbers of bacteria and actinomycetes determined by the customary agar pla te pro- . .. cedures . Sample pH Numbers of microorganisms, per grain of s o i l 110. Bac % r i a Ac tinornycetss %Actinomycetes 8335 8.0 328,003 4,957,000 82b3 8.4 200,~00 94 3,982,Coo 8332 8.0 971,000 95 2,100,000 68 8120 8.0 1,705,000 6,1bO,OOO 82 It is t o be noted t h a t the reaction of a l l s o i l s r,7as d i s t i n c t l y alkaline. O f par t icular i n t e r e s t i s the f a c t t h a t the numbers of bacteria were i n a l l cases lower than those of actinomycetes and t h a t With 3 of the 4 s o i l s more than per cent of the colonies t h a t developed on the agar plates were those of actino- mycetes. A s imilar observation was made with s o i l obtained some years ago from Bikini. %is is contrary t o what one expects t o f ind i n s o i l s of temperate regions par t icu la r ly those of humid climates. These s o i l s are generally acid (pH 6.0 or l e s s ) and the percentage of the t o t a l colonies t ha t are produced by actinomycetes generally vary betrieen 5 and 1i0 per cent. The predominance of actinonrgrcetes i s in t e r e s t i ng i n vier.1 of the f a c t t h a t many of these organisms produce ant ibiot ics . It is possible, -therefore, t h a t tlie ac tinornycetes a f f ec t the transf or- mations of material i n the s o i l s by the i r antagonistic e f fec t s . It is a l so possible t h a t some actinomycetes rmy be obtained from these s o i l s t h a t w i l l serve some useful purpose as producers of new chemotherapeutic substances . I' Sources of Voe So i l s 8120. Lime sand s o i l from the center of North Island. 82&. Lime sarld s o i l from Talouarorae under vegetation. 8332. So i l from babai p i t . North Island. 8335. Soil. f r o m ~ m d e r Guettarda %Tee, s o ~ l t h en4 of i . io~th i s l and . A N A E Taxonoqy and Distribution of Algae The algae from Cnotoa include both fresh-water and marine forms. The fresh-water habi ta ts include the s o i l surface, the babai p i t s and the brackish pools. The marine habi ta t s include the beach rock, lagoon and the seaward (windward) reef . I,lany of the lagoon collections were made by D r . Preston E. Cloud, Jr., . Donald W. Strasburg and Dr. A. H. Banner while carrying out t h e i r own e,xpl.oratio?s. The ident i f ica t ion of the algae is s t i l l i n preliminary stages and much material remains t o be determined. The ident i f ica t ion of the Lyxophyta t o species has been done by W. Francis b o u e t a t the Chicago Huseum of Natural History and. speci- mens a re deposited there. A s iden t i f ica t ion proceeds co:xplete s e t s of a l l algae a r e being deposited i n the U. S. National Herbarium, Bernice P. Bishop iiuseum, and the Chrysler Herbarium a t Rutgers IJniversity. Duplicates have been dis t r ibuted t o the New York Botanical Garden, Uni- ve r s i t y of California Herbarium a t Berkeley, University of Echigan Herbarim, Farlow Herbarium a t Harvard and the !!erbarium of the Uni- ve r s i t y of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The following report includes a l imited and preliminary discussion of the ecology of the algae on Me a t o l l , followed by a species l i s t of the algae iden t i f ied t o date. I t i s the hope of the author t o publish a detai led f i n a l report on tne algae a t a future date. A paper on the Halimeda and Caulerpa of the a t o l l is already i n manuscript form and w i l l . be subrfli%ted f o r publication shortly. Algae of the s o i l surface. The surface of the road t h a t para l le l s the lagoon from North Island t o Tabuarorae was covered by a "skin1' of blue-green algae. This was a l so true of the well-worn paths and the s o i l where it was bare of vascular plants and remained undisturbed. Two species of Schizothrix and Scytonema hofmannii were very common and formed the bulk of t h i s association. Other blue-greens occurred with these principal species. Some black moss-like t u f t s a r o w i n ~ around areas occu'oied. bv mosses ., proved. t o be Scytonema ocellatum. Tile dune sands of ' the seaward ram- p a r t and the lagoon shore had ~ ~ ~ c r o c o l e u s chthonoplastes and Scytonema hofmannii as the dominant algae. It i s in te res t ing t o note t ha t t h i s species of l&crocoleus i s the dominant alga covering the peat surface on the s a l t marshes of New Jersev. These t e r r e s t r i a l blue-ereens were " - present as a s o i l covering on the bare areas a l l o w r the a t o l l , both i n sun and shade. It has been established t h a t many of the blue-greens, especial ly those belonging to the Mostocales, can f i x nitrogen. The presence on the s o i l of vast sheets comprising imny species suspected of having th i s a b i l i t y may be very signiCicant i n the productivity of the so i l . This is probably an important method by which t h i s element i s made available t o higher plants (Newhouse, 195h, p. 53). The hol.ling of s o i l against wind erosion is another h p o r t a n t contribution of t h i s group of plants. Algae of the babai p i t s . The native taro, ca l led babai (Cmtosperra chamissonis), is grotm i n p i t s dug to the water table. The amount of vater oresent i n the o i t s varied from 6 inches of standing m t e r t o j u s t enoughL t o dampen the so i l . I n a l l the p i t s thick mats or scums were present. Collections of these scums were made i n many of the p i t s , and the a l g a l f l o r a shoved considerable - variation. I n some, Rhizoclonium hieroglnphicum was dominant. In others, members of the blue-green algae, such as Anacystis d i r i d i a h , Plectonema nostocorum and Coccochloris stagnina, were dominant. One p i t sampled had as the dominant form Phacus pleuronectes; associated with i t were members of the genus Euglena. Here again members of the Nyxophyta were probably contributing available nitrogen coinpounds t o the s o i l and thus t o the growing babai plants. The algae here were the primary producers i n the food chain t h a t supported the protozoa, ro t i f e r s , nematodes, ostracods, and eventually the dipterous larvae and dragonfly nymphs present i n these p i t s . One of the fresh-water wells used by the natives i n the Government Area on North i s land was found t o have a mat of Rhizoclonim hj.ero&y- phicum f loat ing on the water surface. . The water l eve l i n t h e trell was approximately 8 f e e t below the surface of the s o i l . The opening of the well was betueen 3 and h f e e t i n diameter ~ h i c h admitted su f f i c i en t l i g h t f o r ijrouth. Algae of the brackish pools. In the area of caliche s o i l on the Pemphis f l a t s a t the north end of North Island there were a number of brackish pools (Cloud: 1952. Atoll Res. Bull. 12:60). These pools were covered by a floating, orange-colored gelatinous mat. The shaded portions and the under surface of the m a t , were olive-green i n color. 'R?o species of Anacystis were the dominant algae, with Coccochl.oris stagnina and three species of Lyngbya a l so present. ?'he bottoms of these pools were l ined u i t h a more g r m d a r and warty mat. The same species were present, but the Lyngbya species were more abundant. A similar association for brackish pools has been re- ported by Wer~house (195b, p. &'). The same association of l i v ing O r - ganisms described above f o r the babai p i t s was preseilt i n these pools. The d is t r ibu t ion of the marine algae i s b e s t discussed under the trio m j o r i,larine habitats, the lazoon and the seaward (windward) reef. There a r e beach rock associations i n both areas t h a t have somewhat dif - fe ren t associations of algae presen.t. h complete description of the geology and topography of the lagoon has been published by Cloud (1952, p. 18). illgal gror.rth i n the lagoon as a whole vas re la t ive ly sparse. The areas of t!~e lagoon a re described below r&th an accol~nt of the principal a lga l species present. . . Beach rock of the lagoon. A t a number of places along the shore of North Island there were outcroppings of beach rock. Near the v i l l age of Taneang a long ridge extended out from the beach a t an angle of 4.5'. Collections of algae made from the surface of these rocks showed tvo species or^ Entophysalis as doininant, rrith Calothrix pilosa and Nostoc muscorum also present. - These species proved t o be present on beach rock a t other places on the lagoon shore. Newhouse (1954, p. b5) reports t h i s association a s the most ubiquitous on Raroia, froro high t i d e l i n e t o below 1 0 7 ~ 1 t i de on the lagoon shore. He also reports the dark coloration on the surface of the rocks due to discoloration of sheath material of Entophysalis by ex- posure t o sunlight. This dark discolora%io!l was a l so evident on Onotoa. Shoreward from the ridge and shel tered by it, the lime-sand bottom had become hardened t o the consistency of hard putty and had the sane blue-meen aleae on the surface a s l i s t e d above: however. a t about one fourti; inch depth was a second layer of blue-gr&ns whick consisted of Osci l la tor ia nigro-viridis, Lyn bya confervoides and Phormidium valderianun. It is proposed by Cloud ( 1 9 ~ d n d o t h e r s t ha t these blue-greens a r e binding the l i m e - s i l t i n t o beach rock. This same type of double-layered association was present a t other places along the lagoon shore. Bequently the beach rock had been eroded and shallow oval t ide pools formed a t di f ferent levels . Tnese solution pools have been studied by Cloud (1954). They were f i l l e d with water by the high t i d e and the s h a l l o ~ . ~ bot.toms were covered 1,~ith a lga l growth. A s o l i d mat of an alga tentat ively iden t i f ied as Enteromorpha compressa grew i n these pools. Other col lect ions from the pools a r e awaiting determinations. Lime-sand shoals. The cen t ra l lagoon along the shore of North Island had a f i n e lime sand bottom, populated by g rea t numbers of sea cucumbers. pkcrodictyon and "uyopsis pennata were col lected i n the wash along the beach. Because of the shoal condition it is possible to wade and s w i m out i n to the lagoon about a 1000 feet. The algae were sparse on th i s shallow f l a t . Patches of a filamentous, gray colored species have been determined as Lyngbya confervoides. It grew on the sandy bottom, and as it prol i ferated it tended t o accumulate mounds of the f i ne s i l t with only the ends of the filaments protruding. Farther out were small patches of Turbinaria ornata with Nicrodictyon - growing with it. Caulerpa urv i l l i ana was col- lected on rock fragments beyond the e7d of the je t ty . The pebbles i n t h i s area were covered with pink cora l l ine growth. Thalassia beds P'orth of the j e t t y on these sand flats there were la rge patches of Thalassia hempirichii tha t formed an allnost so l id stand. Attached t o these plants and floai.ing f r ee among them was a species of I~licrodictyon. h5ydrocolem flociosum vras comnon along the shoreward edge of these beds. --- Caulerpa.serrulata and I-blirneda stuposa were present i n the sandy areas ,, - betmeen the m s i a plants. Northern lagoon. Betneen the 'kalass ia beds and Aonteurna Island rras a gravelly f l a t on %1hich grew soine livin: coral . A t low t ide these f l a t s were co~rered by only about a foot o f water, so the coral masses i n many cases were truncated. The algae here were growing i n sand nockets sca t te red betlreen the masses of dead and l i v ing coral . Halimeda stuposa rras the cormon alga here. Nany of the specimens had developed thick heavy s t i pes t ha t penetrated deeply i n t o the sandy substrate. L,yn,qbya confervoides formed mounds of s i l t as described above. Dictyosphaeria intermedia, Boodlea van -- bossae and Caulerpa r . r e r e o t h e r o - e s e n t . Laurencia grew on some of the coral knobs. These same species, were present on the shal1or.r reef f l a t northeast of Aonteuna, but there .was an increase i n the number of Halimeda plants, inclu&ng another species, HaYimeda ken ico la . . Turbinaria ornata and D i i pwpurascens were a lso found here. Laurencia grew i n the t ide .- pools. A crustose cora l l ine a lga covered the surface of t h i s reef i n many places. 14estern lagoon and reef. The grea tes t concentration of algae species i n t he lagoon was on the western (1eer.rard) reef agd the cora l knolls i n t he western pa r t of the lagoon. Nost of the Halimeda species found on t h e a t o l l were col- l ec ted e i ther on the reef or 'on the co ra l !molls. 1:iany of these knolls Irere surrounded a t the i r bases with a c i r c l e of Halimeda, bu t these did not form extensive meadows over the bo3tom as one sees i n Florida. Caulerpa elongata, C. urvi l l iana, D i ~ t ~ o s p h a e r i a c vernosa and Valonia aegagrophila were cormon i n t h i s area. Polgsiphonia and epiphytic on other algae. Coralline algae ( ~ o r o l i t h o n ) formed huge spher ical masses on the coral knolls, and crustose forms vere covering the dead coral. The deepest par t of the lagoon was west of the vi l lage of Aiaki, South Island. Here on a bottom of dead and l iv ing cora l a t L8 f e e t greri Halimeda bikinensis and - 14. k i d e n s forma tripart=. Passage and Central lagoon reef, Get,ween North Island. a?d Abenekeneke Island was a passage covered . . i i t h f lo~ring vater even a t lo^ t ide . liost of the bottom as f i n e sand, bu-t on the occasional dead and livi.ng coral grew Caulerpa urvi l l iana, Lawencia and many f ine red algae. EYequen.tly the rhizoidal process of the Caulerpa r.!ould grow off the cora l an? t r a i l across the sandy bottom. A shallow reef f l a t adjacent t o the passage and extending i n t o the lagoon a t the southern t i p of I,Iorth Island was dry a t low t ide, except for the t i de pools. Cladophoropsis, Mctyosphaeria, Valonia, Caulerpa urvi l l iana and Enteromorpha were growing on t h i s reef. In the t i d e pools, Lwgbya confervoides grew and accumulated mounds of s i l t as ob- served before. Laurencia and Goniolithon a l so grew i n the t i de pools. The a lga l cover on th i s reef rras sparse. The searrard reef . The seal~ard (r.nnd%~ard) reef f l a t was covered by a f ine a lga l turf . The distribukion of the algae on t h i s reef Tias studied by observations and. collections made from time t o time during July and August. After Dr. A. H. Banner had established a *ransect (A) t o study the invertebrate fauna, one square foo t of a lga l t u r f was scraped from the reef along t h i s transect and preserved. These col lect ions were made a t 50 foot intervals , except rtnere the f l o ra shor.~ed .lo perceptible change. The accompanying table (I) s h o ~ ~ s the dis t r ibut ion of the pr incipal species as determined a t t h i s time. This reef can be divided roughly i n t o f ive areas. Star t ing a t the vegetation l i n e on the beach rampart there is a sloping sandy beach or an outcropping of beach rock. On the sand a t the high t i de l i n e there was usually a d r i f t deposited a f t e r each high t i d e which included she l l s , seeds, plant fragments and algae 02 the reef. Tile beach rock here had the same dark gray color on the surface as t ha t present i n the lagoon, the color being due t o the presence of species of Entophysalis. The upper t i de pools were 5 t o 6 f e e t above the reef f l a t and were f i l l e d with water only from the splash of waves a t high t ide. They had a sl* black coating on the bottom formed by a species of Lyngb:?a. The slime coating was thin i n these top pools and it was necessary t o scrape vigorously t o c o l l e c t it. The middle pools were 3% t o 2 f e e t lower and contained a imt of twisted yellowish or brownish filaments. Entophysalis conferta, Lyngbya confervoides, L. semiplena (f%6b, 8067) and Enterokorpha(?Q6= the pr incipal - species i n t'nese pools. Naviculoid diatoms were a l so present. IhJaater entered these pools from the waves a t high t ide. ~yngbya meneghiniana (8350) was the alga of the bottom pools along with 2. semiplena; t h i s l a s t tras comnon on the reef a t the beach l ine . W r r h i s marina, a pigmented dinoflagellate, and naviculoid diatoms were present among the filaments. The inner zone of the reef f l a t i t s e l f looked barren and uhen dry was the color of the sand. Closer inspection sho1,~ed a s o l i d turf of a f ine red alga a lnost corflpletely covered with f i ne silt. Green algae grew around the edges of the pools shaded by the overhanging s ides and on the underside of stones i n the pools. The bottoms of many of these pools vrere usually scoured clean of a lga l growth, This type of reef extended to about the 250 foot quadrat. The second zone of t!le reef had a predominantly green aspect from a distance and s t a r t ed roughly a t the 300 foot quadrat. A t low t ide t h i s p a r t of the reef showed an alinost continuous se r i e s of t i d e pools and standing rater. Considerably more rraker was present he-re a t l0r.r t ide than on the ,reef a t e i t he r side. Dictyosphaeria an5 Cladophoropsis were the common algae present, covering t!ze f l a t i t s e l f and shoving the darkest green around the edges of the pools and under t h e shaded over- hang of projections. Jania capil lacea made its appearance i n t h i s zone. . - - mch f ine s i l t r,ras caught i n the a lga l turf . The outer border of t h i s reef zone merged rrith the next zone between 150 and. $0 feet . The th i rd zone was red i n color and extended t o the cora l l ine ridge a t 6C0 feet . 1% was covered al!oost co~ t inuous ly with Jania decussato- dichotoma. The Jania cover became heavier i n the back-ridge trough - vhich rms f i l l e d with r.~ater continuouslv. Reshv gelatinous r e d algae - - - - grew a.t the base of the Jania. Very few green algae riere preseot, usually - only Dictyosphaeria. A branched cora l l ine alga, Goniolithon, occurred i n the wider parts of t h i s zone and sometimes formed s o l i d stands. The outer edge of t h i s zone was i r reg ' j lar ly defined by the surge channels and mounds t h a t extended back from the ridge i t s e l f . The cora l l ine ridge formed the outermost zone and was continually washed a n battered by the heavj surf. %is ridge was most spectacular i n appearance, extending i n e a c h direct ion as f a r as the eye could see. Setchel l (192h: Veg. of Rose !\toll, Car. Ins t . Pub 341:2&3) qnotes the Funafuti report i n t h i s spectacular Onotoan reef was described. The same species t h a t form the reef here a t Onotoa, occur on Rose Atoll. The ridge f ron t was covered coxpletely with a smooth pink crustose cora l l ine alga, probably - Porolithon..ogJc.qdes. The ridge was broken by long, smooth-walled surge cha~mels, k t o 5 f e e t deep and gradually becoming shallower, ending i n the back ridge trough. Each vave h i t t i n g the f r o n t of the ridge sen t a rush of water up these surge channels i n t o the back ridge trough. Alternating with the surge channels uere dividing mounds 7 t o h f e e t iiisher than the ncneral elevation of the reef . These < - u mounds uere covered by upright pin!-acles of Porolithon craspedium f . mayo-sii, pink i n color, but fading t o white on.drying;. Jania covered the base of tne ridge as a shor t tu r f and also grew around the bases and between tne blase-like projections of the ~ o r o l i t h o n craspedium. Caulerpa urvi:lliana occasionally grew on the slope of these mounds.. Very few of tile cushiony greens occurred here. Dict~osphaeria s e t c h e l l i i grerr along bi le surge cha:xels. pn the smo~th shaded walls of the channels g?i;+ls c r i en t a l i s r.ms inconspicuous, but connnon. Here is another ex::m:le of the dis t r ibut ion mentioned by Doty (1954, p. 367) vhere t he genus Fthij-iilia occurs on an a t o l l i c the absence of the genus Sarrsasswn. Records for the square foot quadrats. I. Beach L.?.e. (8123). Algal f e l t was scanty and short , giving barely any color t o the reef surface. The bo-ttom of the pools a t t h i s l eve l liere scovred clean. The dominant a lga l forms were small s o f t t u f t s with much sand intermingled, and these vrere iden t i f ied as Schizothrix cressr ie l l i i and Lyngbya semiplena. A p r o l i f i c branched species of Znteromorpha was f a i r l y cormon. 2. Bansect a t 50 fee t . (8124). A recidis!l color was observed on the reef f l a t here a?d the t u r f was more or l e s s continuous. An alga ten- ta t ive ly iden t i f ied as Pterocladia formed t!&? reddish t u r f 5lhich was 8 t o 13 ii11il. t a l l . Cnly the eqds of the filaments protruded from the f ine s i l t . Dictyosphaeria a ~ d Cladophoropsis, the grew1 algae present, greriaround the edges of t ide pools. Small amouds of Jania ca'pillacea -grew i n the cushions of the gree.3 algae. A Chroococcus-like blue-green alga Iormed dense m t s around other algae. 3. Transect a t 1 ~ 0 fee t . (8125). !he Klora was m~ch the same as . - . described for the 5'0 foo t transect. The gro:rth of Pterocladia and the green algae bordering the t ide pools was heavier. Porolithon onkodes encrusted pebbles i n the t ide pools. It. Transect a t 150 fee t . (0126). Pteroc1adj.a was s t i l l piiesent giving a reddish color to the r ee f flat. Cladonhorop&s and Dictyosp'iaeria grerr into huge cushions formin?; a so l id rinp; around t i de pools. -Lynibya sordida grew a l o n ~ the edges of these pools. Jania was %roving mixed - with Cladophoropsis . 5. pansec t a t 2r0 fee t . (8136). p a c e s of Pterocladia were s t i l l present on the reef f l a t , but Cladophoropsis w m , extending out over the reef f l a t from the edges of the t ide pools. Other species present as described i n 150 foot transect. 6. No sample a t 250 feet . 7, Bansect a t 300 f ee t . (8137;. S::ecies of green algae, Cladophoropsis, - 3oodlea and Dictyosphaeria completely encircled the pools anc! covered most of the reef f l a t . Red algae piere v e r j scarce a t th i s s ta t ion on the reef. Porolithon pebbles were present i n t l ~ e t i d e pools. 8. Transect a t 350 f ee t . (8163). Zle t u r f covering the reef here was very short. T'ater covered most of t h i s sect ion of the reef a t low t ide. I n addition t o the species present a t 3 :0 f ez t , Jania capil lacea was the -dominant red alga present andgrew over and mixed with Boodlea. 9. No sainple a t Ll.00 fee t . 10. Transect a t h50 fee t . (816t~). The general aspect of the reef r.7as s t i l l green a t t h i s s ta t ion . The reef f l a t vas d q j here a t loit tide, but there were many t i de pools Zi l led rrihh rrater. Green species ?.rere present as above. Laurencia, bleacl~ed yellov, was coiliilon i n the t i de pools. Crustose coral l ines were more cormon. TTJO species of Jania - were abundant, with J. decussato-dichotonia the common species. An occasional specimen of Porolithon gardineri was found i n t h i s area . 11. Transect a t 500 feet . (81681. The predominant color of. the reef from t h i s point t o the surf l i n e was red. Jania decussato-dichotoma --- - was the dominant alga here on the reef f l a t . Laurencia was a l so common. Boodlea, Cladophoropsis and Dictyosphaeria grev around the edges and i n the bottom of the t ide pools. 12. Transect st 550 feet . (8169). Jania decussato-dichotoma had almost -100% cover a t t h i s station. A l a rge species of Laurencia was present and a few sinall plants of Dictyosphaeria. Centroceras clavulatum ms growing on the Laurencia. Goniolithon frutescens f i r s t appeared on the - reef a t th i s p o z ; ; ~ , 13. 'l'ransect a t 6 ~ 0 feet . (8170). The back ridge trough s t a r t e d a t this quadrat. The reef flat.r.,aas ;hinost completely covered with an en- tanglad grouth of - Jania and the branching cora l l ine Goniolithon. The Laurencia growing here was frequently covered with epiphytic diatoms Licmophora and Cocconeis. 1 Transect a t 650 feet . The cora l l ine ridge const i tuted the outer zone of the reef and has been described above. Table 1. Distribution of algae on the seaward (windward) reef . Distance from beach ( f e e t ) Algae Beach 50 100 150 200 300 350 L50 500 5 9 600 650 Lyngbya semiplena D t S c h i z o t k i x c reswel l i i D Enterornorpha sp. D Cladophoropsis sp. Oictyosphaeria spp. Pterocladia sp. Jania capil lacea Porolithon onlcodes Ljmgbya sordida Laurencia spp. Soodlea sp. Jania decussato-dichotoiza Porolithon gardineri Goniolithon frutescens Porolithon craspedium Caulerpa -mvil l iana Rhipi l ia o r ien ta l i s Polysiphonia sp. Key: D-dominant species. P-present i n f a i r quantity. t-traces only. ALGAE Tentative Species Lis i -. i ~yxophyta Identification t o specLes i n t h i s group were made by Dr. b a n c i s Drouet, Chicago Xuseum of Natural History. Anabaena sp. North Island 8325, A few filaments were found growing i n a mat of Rhizoclonium hieroglyphicurn on the sandy surface of a babai p i t . Anacys tis dimidiata ( ~ k a . 1 D r . & Daily North Island 83.66, 8345, 83L6. A member of the a lga l f l o ra i n the babai p i t s around the base of the Eleocharis plants. This species was a lso found i n the thick mat on the surface of the brackish pools i n the "caliche" s o i l area. This mat was orange in color on top, but olive-green below. It was also present, i n the granular bottom scum of these same pools. Other algae present i n these mats were A. montana, Coccochloris stagnina, ~yngbya-versicolor, 4. aes t ua r i i , . - guamensis. North Island 8345, 8103; South Island 8216, 8217. Tabuarorae 8236. This species tias present as par t of the f l o ra i n the mat on the sur- face of the brackish pools. It a l so occurred with Scytonema hofmannii on bare sandy areas between large cora l fragments on the exposed-northern t i p of North Island. Blue green algae collected from coconut and Pandanus logs a lso contained t h i s species associated with 2. hofmamii. Calothrix pilosa Ham. Lagoon beach 8182, 8393. A spongy mass on the beach and on beach rock a t the high t i de l ine ; the collections were made a t the north end of the lagoon near the v i l l age of Teneang. Growing here with other blue greens. Coccochloris stagnina Spreng. $1 orth Island 832&, 83&, 83b6; Tabuarorae 8242. One of the species com!non i n the f l o ra a t the bottom of the babai p i t s , i n one case associated with ----- Plectonema nostocorum. -- This species was a l so found as a member of the f loat ing mat described Ur&r Rnacystis dimidiata. Entophmalis conferta (1&tz,.) Dr. & Daily Morth Island W6& Growing i n the middle t ide pools of the beach rock outcrop on the sea1,ard s ide of the North Island a t the camp s i t e . These are the t i d e pools studied i n respect t o t he i r pH andtemperature, as reported by Cloud (Atol l Res. Bu l l . ii12, 1952). This species a lso covered the beach rock and gave i t a bluish color, (see Mewhouse, 19%. Atoll Research B u l l . #33: 5 3 ) . Other species present i n the t i de pool were Lyngbya confervoides and - L. semiplena. Entophysalis crustacea (J. hg.) D r . & Daily North Island 8182. ,. . . Found covering the beach rock a t high t ide leve l i n t he lagoon near the v i l l age of Teneang. Associated ~ ~ i t h Calothrix pi losa and other blue greens. . . Entophysalis deus t a (Pienegh.) Dr. & Daily North Island 8183. Growing on beach rock a t high t i de level , 100 f e e t from shore. Same area as E, crustacea. - Fischerella ambigua ($Tag.) Gom. 14 orth Island 81114. Found on the s o i l a t the top edge of a babai pit . Associated with Scytonerna hofmannii. Hydrocoleum floccosum (Hauck.) Gom. Lagoon 8190. Growing on the bottom of the lagoon and covered a t low tide. Common a t the shore end of the Thalassia beds ( t u r t l e p a s s ) . Lmnbrra aes t u a r i i Gom. North Island 8119. A member of the community of algae i n the scum on the brackish pools. See Anacys t i s . Lyngbya confervoides Ag. Lagoon e026, e028, 8182; North Island 836li. Gror.ring on the lagoon reef f l a t a t the south t i p of North Island, a t low t ide leve l about 1 C O f e e t from shore. The f u r of filaments had become f i l l e d with f ine lime silt, so t h a t only the t i p s showed above the loose mass. This condition was ;loticed a t other places over the lagoon bottom. Tnis species was a l so a member of the f l o ra i n the middle t ide pools of the beach rock on the seaward s ide of Korth island. It was found associated 7dth Entophysalis crustacea on beach rock i n the lagoon. A t one s i t e t h i s species formed a dark blue green stratum about 5 of an inch below the surface of the s o f t beach rock. Lyngbya g u a m n s i s Dr. North Island 8119, 83&. A member of the f loa t ing mat community i n %he brackish pools. See description under Anacystis dimidiata. I1 Lyngbya meneghiniana (Kuta.) Gom. North Island 8350. A member of the f l o ra growing i n the lowest t i d e pools i n the beach rock on the seaward s ide of Forth Island. Lmgbya semiplena Gom. North Island 80&, 8067; seaward reef 8123. A member of the a lga l community from the $i&ddle t i de pools of the beach rock on the seaward s ide of Worth island. With Entophysalis conferta and Lyngbya confervoides. In the f i r s t of a se r ies of transects scraped from the seaward reef , t h i s s p c i e s with Schizothrix cresswel l i i were members of the a lga l f e l t covering the reef a t beach level. Lyngbya sordida (~anard.) Gom. Seaward reef 8390C, 8k82C. This plant was present i n the t ide pools of the green a lga l zone of the seaward reef , associated with Dictyosphaeria. Lyngbya versicolor Gom. North Island 8119, 83h5, 83k6. This species was grotring i n t he f loa t ing mat community and i n the granular bottom deposits i n the brackish p o d s of the "oaliche" area. See under Rnacystis dimidiata. North Island 8166. In the material collected f r o m the babai p i t s a few specimens of t h i s genus were found. 13icrocoleus chthonoplastes (F1. Dan.) Thur. North Island 01311, 8ti73; lagoon 81m. One of the algae present i n the s o i l cornunity of the old dune sands of the rampart on the seaward s ide of North Island. Growing with Scptonema hofmannii. It was also found on the lagoon beach. i\iostoc muscorum Ag. Lagoon 8179. Occurring on exposed, inc ip ien t beach rock of the lagoon a t low t ide leve l , with Scptonema hofmannii. Nostoc sp. North Island 8320, 8322. Young material was grating on the s o i l of a path i n t h e center of Morth Island i n a community including Schizothrix heuf le r i and Scptonema hofmannii. Drouet reports t ha t the material i n 8322, which was associated with a moss, was parasitized. Osci l la tor ia nigro-viridis (RW.) Gom. - Lagoon 8182B. This species formed a l i g h t green s t r a t u m i n beach rock a t high t i d e leve l i n the lagoon a t the prof i le s tudied a t the v i l l age of Taneang, Worth Island. Here i t bras associated with Lyngbya, Calothrix and Phormidium valderiarnum. Phormidium crosbyanum Tild. Bikati Island, Big Llakin Atoll, Gi lber t Islands 8009. This species covered the cora l rocks and l i ned the depressions on the reef a t high t i de level. Phormidium valderiarnum Gom. Lagoon 8182B. Bssociated with Oscil latoria - nigro-viridis b~hich see. Plectonema nostocorum Gom. Tabuarorae 82112. Ibis alga vras present i n the mat i n the bottom of an abandoned babai p i t , gr01finiZ with Coccochloris s t a m i n a around the stems of Eleocharis. Schizothrix cresswel l i i Haw. Seaward reef 8123. With Lwgbya semiplena, growing i n the f i r s t t ransect of algae scraped from the seaward reef a t beach level . Schizothrix f r i e s i i (Ag.) Gom. North Island 8111, 8285, 8321; Tabuarorae 8240. Covering the s o i l ( s i l t y loam) on paths, i n the sun as well as i n the shade. It p a s a lso collected on the beach rampart. Most frequently it associated viith Scgtonema hofmannii. Schizothrix heufler i Grun. North Island 8320. The skin-like coating on the s o i l surface of a path i n the center of North Island was formed by t h i s alga and two associates, Scytonema hofmannii and young Nos toc. Scgtonema guyanense (Hont.) Born. & nab. North Island 8118. This species was growing on the r o o k of a f a l l en coconut tree. Scytonema hofmannii Ag. North Island 8103, 8134, 81b4, 8160, 8285, 8321, 8322, 8473; lagoon 8179; South Island 8215, 8217; Tabuarorae 8236. The common blue green alga of t he s o i l coriuvmity, it was found grobiing on the paths, roads, seaward rampart and logs. It also occurred i n the babai p i t s . Only one collection was found. on the beach rocks i n the lagoon, where i t r.ras associated with Wostoc muscorwn. In the s o i l collection it grew With - a wide var ie ty of blue greens including the f o l l o % ~ g generat Anacgstis, Fischerella, T- Rostoc and Schizothrix. Scytonema ocellatum Lyngby North Island &96; Tabuarorae 8241B. The black t u f t s of t h i s alga resembled the moss plants with which it grel. It was found on lime sand s o i l along the lagoon road, usually in deep shade. Chlorophyta Avrainvillea sp. Western Reef 8443. This is probably A. nigricans Dec. but f i n a l determination has n o t been made. Growing i n 5 feex of water attached t o cora l rocks. The p lan t was 4; cm t a l l . Boodlea sp. Seaward reef 8137, 8163. Scattered plants of t h i s unidentified Boodlea grew on the seaward reef. This area was dry a t low t ide except for the t ide pools which were usually c lear of algae. In the preliminary survey of the a lga l f e l t scraped from the seaward reef this specie was found sparingly i n the 300-foot t ransect along with other green algae, but i n the 350-foot t ransect it formed a tu r f overgrown with Jania capillacea. Boodlea vanbosseae Reinbold. Lagoon 8421. This species grew on the f l a t s a t the lorthwes t corner of the a t o l l and was exposed a t low tide. I t t j a s growing with Ceramium and Polysiphonia. Bryopsis penqata Lam. Lagoon 8354. The only specimen of t h i s plant tha t has been found i n the collections so f a r was a thick mat washed up on the lagoon beach. Caulerpa elongata Weber Van Bosse. Lagoon 8260, 8261, 8263, 8401, 8452. This species of Caulerpa was confined t o the western s ide of the lagoon. A l l but one specimen were attached t i g h t l y t o coral rocks. 'he exception was found growing on Valonia aegagrophila, which was attached t o cora l rock. Both f. typica and f. dis t icha were recorded. Because of i ts small s i z e t h i s species may have bee? overlooked frequently. Caulerpa se r ru la ta (Forssk.) J. kg. Lagoon W52, 8425; Betio, Tarawa Atoll 8624. The specimens assigned t o t h i s species were confined t o shallow water i n the cen t ra l pa r t of the Onotoa lagoon on lime sand bottom. It also grew i n the Thalassia patches of the north cen t ra l lagoon. 'he Tarawa specimen was collected on the western seatiard reef of Betio. Caulerpa urv i l l i ana Mont. Lagoon 8029, e052, 82L9, 8235A, 8317, 81108, 8409, 8425, 8433. West reef a t Aonteuma 8100; f l a t , e a s t of donteurna 8423. Water-way between islands 61113, 8445; seaward reef 8174, 8188. The commonest species of Caulerpa on the a t o l l . It grew i n shallow waters, uncovered a t low tide, down t o a depth of 14 feet . It was present i n the patches of %alassia i n the lagoon. The i so la ted patches of coral i n the flowing water beWeen the islands had growths of t h i s Caulerpa on them. It was attached by the root-l ike s t ructures of the horizontal rhizoid t o cora l rock, lime sand, l i v ing blue coral and the coral l ine algae c rus t of the seaward ridge. 14herever i t grew the habi t of the plant tended t o cause the deposition of si l t . 1"Iicrodictyon and many small red algae grew upon it as epiphytes. Chaetomorpha sp. Lagoon 81175. A species assigned tentat ively t o t h i s genus was found growing on the bottom of one of the boats we used f o r survey work i n the lagoon. The boat had been i n the lagoon water continuously from June 30th t o August 28th. Enteromorpha was a l so present. Cladophoropsis sp. Seaward reef 6136, 8137. A member of the green a lga l community on the seaward reef . It was the dominant species a t 200 f e e t f r a n shore, bu t codominant wikh Dictyosphaeria a t 300 fee t . Dictyosphaeria sp. Seaward reef 816h; lagoon e026, 8263. The s r~c imens have not been debrmined t o species a t the time of this wri-ting. The specimen from the seaward reef was growing a t 450 f e e t from shore and was not abundanl. The other specimens were found on a reef f la t , 100 f e e t frola shore j u s t a t 1or.r t ide level. Also growing with Valonia on coral rocks on the lagoon s ide of the western reef. Dictyosphaeria cavernosa (Forssk.) Borg. Seaward reef 8137, 8393, 8k82B; lagoon 8278, 8309, 8&6, 8k79, 8421; Betio, Tarawa Atoll 8632. The common species of Onotoa Atoll. An abundant p lan t on the seaward reef., codominant trith Cladophoropsis a t 300 f e e t from the shore. It was common i n the lagoon on coral knolls and rocks t o a depth of 10 feet. Nany of the hollori globular plants had s p l i t open i n t o i r regular f la tmasses . Collected a l so on the seaward reef of Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll. Dic tyosphaeria. intermedia 1Ceber Van Bosse Seaward reef 8163, 8390B; reef f l a t northwest corner of Atoll 8k21. This species grew on the seaward reef a t 3 9 f e e t from shore. It occurred also on the vast f l a t a t the northwest end of t i e a t o l l where i t was exposed a t 101.1 tide. There a r e many collections of t h i s genus re- maining t o be deterlilined so other examples of t h i s species t r i l l no doubt be found. Dictyosphaeria s e t c h e l l i i Borg. Seavard reef 8045. This species has been found only once i n the collections examined t o date. It was collected on the ridges between the surge channels on the seaward reef. Here the surf washes over i t even a t 1or.r t i de and i t is never completely dry. Trabeculae ins ide the c e l l s were many and measured 100 t o 118 microns i n length. Some of them were forked. Enteromorpha sp. Lagoon 8475. An undetermined species was collected on the bottom of one of the boats used i n the lagoon. See under Chaetomo*. This species of Enteromorpha i s only s l i gh t ly branched. Enteromorpha compressa (L.) Grev. Lagoon 8181. This Enteromorpha was growing a t the base of the beach rock a t high t i de l e v e l i n the lagoon, a t the vi l lage of Taneang. A deta i led paper analyzing the Halimedas is i n manuscript and w i l l be published separately soon. Halimeda opuntia (L.) Lam. -- -- lflestern Reef 8 1 1 5 ~ ~ 8249, 8249B, 8256A, 8256B, 8257, 8258, 8272.4; lagoon 8318, 8398A, 81~41, 8471; seaward reef 8b78. The mos t common and rridel:? dis t r ibuted sgecies on the a t o l l . iIos t of the collections vere from the westwn r e e f or cora l knolls along the :%?stern sirle of the lagoon. Only one specimen r.i?.s co!.lectecl orl the vindward c? sex::rd rccf and i t had been vaahed i n t o 2. t i de pool. i\ievei. abundant but genepa.!-ly g rwing i n sinall patches or i n a c i rc le , turf-l ike, wound the bases of the coral knolls, f m n ju s t below the surface t o a c'epth of 6 meters. Ti~is species described by Taylor (Plants of Bikini, University of izchigan Press, 1950) from 3 ik in i iras col.lected a t only one location, i n the deepest p a r t of the lagoon, opposite the v i l l age o f Aiaki, South Island. 'he bottom here Tias lime mud and sand. The depth of ra~ater was k8 feet . Halimeda f r a g i l i s W. R, Taylor Lagoon 8246, 8265, 81t38; western reef 8272~3. %is species was a l so first described by Taylor from Bikini. Specimens were.collected fron the western reef on both the lagoon and seaward side, and on coral knolls. It vas fouqcl growinc i n water 3 t o 12 f e e t deep, on lime sand and coral rock bottom. Halimeda or ien ta l i s Gilbert Lagoon 8409. Apparently r a r e s ince only one c o l l e c t i o ~ rws made. This was found i n the western s i d e of the lagoon between the r ee f Rakai Taka and Rakai A t i i n 3 f e e t of water. Halimeda stuposa W. R. Taylor Western reef 8115; sand f l a t s of Aonteuma 8113, 81181; lagoon 8221, 8277, 8359A, 8426. This species was v e r j abundant i n the shallow sandy north portion of the lagoon and on the shal l0 '~ sandy tcgdward reef f l a t s extending north eas t from Aonteuma. Fairly common i n the shallow area covered with Thalassia. In many of these habi ta t s the plants were par t ly or en t i r e ly exposed at low tide. One col lect ion was made on the leeward reef west of Aonteuma Island, i n a surge channel. Halimeda taenicola W. R. Taylor Western reef 8116, 8270; r ee f f l a t northeast of Aonteuma 8b34. This large and heavily ca l c i f i ed species Tias found growing on the leeward reef i n surge channels and holes i n the reef. Most of the specimens col lected were i n 6 t o 11 f e e t of water. Found growing ~ 6 t h H. opuntia. Halimeda tr idens (El l i s & solander) Lamouroux f . t r i p a r t i t a arton on) Collins. Western reef 8271; lagoon 81668. Not a conunon species. Found i n the deepest pa r t of the lagoon a t 48 f e e t with H. bikinensis, and on the seaward edge of the leeward reef i n 6 t o 11 f eet-of water. PIicrodictyon sp. Lagoon 8263; t i de pool, seaward reef 8478. Huch of the PIicrodictyon col lected remain t o be determined. These .--A algae were very comon along the shore of the lagoon and i n the lba lass ia beds. Sp?!:ilxen 8263 vas growing on coral rocks with Valonia i n t he we;.eu.tertn r??.ea of the lagoon. Number 8478 was collected from a t ide pool on the s e a ~ a r a reef with blue green algae. Kcrodictyon mbilicatum Velley. -- Lagoon 8b09. Growing with Halirneda i n the western area of the lagoon. Rhipil ia o r ien ta l i s A. and E. S. Gepp - - - w p m Seaward reef 8370, 83m. Fair ly common as a fungus-like growth on the smooth walls of the surge channels on the searrard reef i n shaded si tuations. Exposed a t low t ide only between waves. - Po1.ysiphonia was epiphytic on these plants. It Rhizoclonium - hieroglynhicum .- (AK.) Kutz. North Island m46, 813.5, 8166, 8325. A common mcmber of the freshwater a lga l community i n the babai p i t s , sometimes forming huge mats cor~ering the en t i re surface. A t other times mixed rjith the blue greens present. Also found growing i n one of the fresh- water wells where the water l eve l was 15 f e e t below the s o i l surface. Valonia aegagrophila C. Ag. Lagoon 8263; seacard reef 0287. Cne collection was on cora l roc!cs on the lagoon s ide of the western reef. The other wax gronring nearly 300 f e e t from shore on t h e seaward reef, mixed with other algae i n the t u r f covering the reef. Syrrophyta Exuviella sp. - the Present i n masses of inicroscope a i the time Cocconeis sp. Licmophora sp. Cladophoropsis of collection. and blue Chrys ophyta (Diatoms) greens examined under Present as an egiphyte on other algae growing a t 600 f e e t froin beach on seaward Transect A. A very common epiphyte, especial ly on material col lected i n August. Found grovir?~ o:i Laursncia Ceramium and other a lgae on the seaward reef -- .-$ and i n the h?k-ridge trough of t h i s reef. Also cannon on algae col lected froin the lpgoon. Podocgstis sp. An occasional epiphyte on other algae. S t r i a t e l l a uni.punc t a t a (~yngbye) Agardh Noticed as an occasional epiphyte on Jania and other red algae. Unidentified diatom An unidentified epiphyte covered plants of DasNa (826W and Polysiphonia collected on the lagoon s ide of t he western reef. Euglena spp. North Island 8138, 8166. An unconman member of the a lga l community i n the bottom of the babai p i t s . With A~acys tis and Phacus . p l e r c ~ c c c t e s lull.) Duj. - I\T or th Island 813 8. Tie dominant organism present i n water col lected from the bottom of one of the babai p i t s . Euglena and a few c i l i a t e s the only other orga!lisms present. Phaeophyta Turbinaria ornata J. Ag. Seaward reef 8017, 8032, 8122, 848%; lagoon &375;, 8221, 8276; reef f l a t northwest corner of a t o l l 8b21; Rogeron Island, E3ajuro Atoll, Marshall Islands @Oh. The specimens from the sear~ard reef were picked up i n the wash on the beach and probably came from beyond the cora l l ine ridge, since th i s species did not occur on the reef f l a t i t s e l f . The only f e r t i l e specimen came from the seaward reef. The lagoon specimens were grorring i n i r regular patches on coral fragments i n @ f e e t of water, 200 f e e t from shore. The specimens from the reef f l a t a t the northwest end of the a t o l l were growing exposed a t low tide. Padina sp. - Collected from the seaward reef (western reef) of the Island of Betio, Taranra Atoll i n September on the re turn t r i p . Tnis alga was ~ o t i c e d as very common a t the landing on Najuro, Narshall Islands, but not collected. -.. mssing from the f l o r a of Onotoa. Rhodophyta Ceramiwn sp. Noticed as one of the f ine epiphytic algae growing on many of the larger algae on the seaward reef and i n the lagoon. Centrocerus clavatulum (C. Agardh) Kontagne Seavrard reef 8289. Growing epiphytically over Laurencia and Jania on the outer end of the seaward reef . This species, occurring very commonly as a f i n e f u ~ z y epiphytic grovth t igh t ly attached and intertwined, was found i n examining many other algae. Dasya ssp. - Lagoon 8261, 8264. 'he two specimens above a f t e r preliminary examination seem t o belong t o tiiis genus. Both grew on coral rock i n the western s ide of the lagoon and were associated rrith Caulerpa and Polysiphonia. .. . Dictyurus purpwascens Bory Reef northeast of Aonteuma 8358; reef shoals outside cora l l ine r idge 8458. One specimen was growing i n water 8 f e e t deep a t low t ide and was growing i n a hole i n a coral head. The other on coral rock outside the coral l ine ridge on the seaward s ide of Forth Island. Jania sp. - Lagoon e026; seaward reef 8164, 8289. These specimens have not been s a t i s f a c t o r i l y determined a t the present r i n g . The one from the lagoon grew on a reef f l a t a t the south end of Xorth Island and was exposed a t low tide. The other two were col lected with Laurencia and Centrocerus on the outer end of the seaward reef i n the red a lga l zone. Jania -capil lacea Harvey Seaward reef 8136, 8163, 8164, 8287. A very common member of the a lga l t u r f community on the seaward reef . 1% f i r s t appeared i n collections a t 200 f e e t from shore, attached t o Cladophoropsis. It became dominant a t 350 feet . It was l e s s common a t 2150 f e e t where i t was growing on Laurencia. The follordng species of Jania replaced i t here i n abundance. Jania decussato-dichotoma (Yendo) Yendo - Seaward reef 8163; 8164. . . This species f i r s t appeared on the seaward reef a t 350 f e e t from shore and became the dominant form of Jania on the outer end of the reef from hSO f e e t t o 600 feet . A t h50 f e e t it shared dominance ~ i t h Laurencia, while from 500 t o 600 f e e t it grew on and over the crustose Porolithon onkodes. Laurencia sp. None of the members of t h i s genus have been determined t o species a t th is writing. Lagoon reef f l a t 8026; seaward reef 8164, 8287, 8289, 8367. In the lagoon t h i s alga was growing on the reef f l a t a t the south end of North I s l a x i i n pools and i n sone cases par t ly exposed a t low t ide. It grew on the seaward reef from L50 f e e t to 600 f e e t fro!n shore associated with Jania -> Valonia, Centrocerus. In !lugust i t was covered with epiphytic diatoms of the genus Licmophora. It was a dominant member of the reef f l o ra a t 450 fee t . Several species a r e represented by the collections. Polysiphonia sp. Lagoon 8026. The species of Polysiphonia examined t o date a r e s t e r i l e and have not been determined t o species. The genus grows as pa r t of the filamentous fuzz on la rger algae such as Laurencia, Caulerpa, Jania, and Dasya. - Porolithon gardineri (Foslie) Foslie Seaward reef 816b. The determination of the cora l l ine red algae remains t o be done. The two specimens iden t i f ied tentat ively as t h i s species were col lected i n the one square foot t ransect on the seaward reef a t kf;O feet . Porolithon onkodes (Heydrich) Foslie Seavard reef 8136, 8137, 8163, Only a tentat ive i d e ~ ~ t i f i c a t i o n of t h i s crustose alga. Found growing on pebbles i n the t ide wools of the seaward reef a t 200, 300, and 350 f e e t from shore. Presumed t o be the pavement c rus t a t 550 f e e t and out over the cora l l ine ridge. Porolithon craspedium (Foslie) Foslie Coralline ridge 83 71, 83 72. The dominant cora l l ine on top of the ridges separating the surge channels. Blue green algae, possibly an Oscil.latoria, and - Sania growing down i n t h e creases between the blade-like s t ructures . Pterocladia sp. The shoreward edge of the seaward reef is covered by a shor t red alga with only the bleached t i p s showing above the silt. After preliminary examination of t h i s plant I have tentat ively placed i t i n t h i s genus. It is the dominant member of the a lga l community on the reef from 50 f e e t to 1 C O f e e t and i s associated here ixi.th a few plants of Cladophoropsis.