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ON A COLLECTION OF MOSSES FROM THE KANARA DISTRICT.
BY
H. N. Dixon, M.A., F.L.S.,
Northampton, England.
I have in my herbarium numerous unpublished species of Mosses from various parts of India, including the types of a considerable number of new species, mostly from the Madura District, S. India, pro- posed by Mons. Cardot, and received from him before the war, Various reasons prevent the publication of these at the present time, not least the high cost of printing. A new Moss Mora of India is greatly needed, and if in the course of the next few years this should be possible, it may be best to include the publication of these new species in such a work.
The present collection, however, was made in a somewhat restric- ted area, and it seems desirable to treat it independently, being made in a little worked district, and with some rather special features of geographical and climatic interest. It was made by Mr. L. J. Sedg- wick, P.L.S., on a trip with some friends to the Gairsoppa Falls, via Kanvar and the Devimane Ghat, all in N. Kanara, in October 1919, and the country further inland South and West of Dharwar during three preceding years.
Mr. Sedgwick has collected mosses in several parts of the Bombay Presidency, in or near the Western Ghats ; some of the results have been already published (cf. Journ. of Bot. 47, p. 157 ; 48, p. 297 ; 49, p. 137 ; 50, p. 145), while others await publication.
The rapid diminution in the rainfall as one proceeds eastwards from the crest of the Ghats is very striking, and the character of the moss-flora is naturally very directly affected by it. Thus at Castle Eock, about 15. 5° N. lat , and 74. 5° E. long., the rainfall is about 250 in., not much less than its maximum in the Ghats (at Mahablesh- war it reaches 276 in.) ; at Anmod, which is close to Castle Kock, it has already fallen to probably about 150 in. ; while at and round about Dharwar, less than 50 miles inland, it is about 30-40 in., annually.
It will give some idea of the collecting ground, and at the same time will avoid much repetition of details in the list of mosses if I re- produce here some notes sent me by Mr. Sedgwick as to several of the localities where gatherings were made.
