NATURALISTS’ HELD CLUB.

Otago Witness, Issue 3865, 10 April 1928, Page 23

NATURALISTS’ HELD CLUB.

FIRST INDOOR MEETING. The first indoor meeting of the Dunedin Naturalists* Field Club was held in the lecture room at the Medical School ’last wek. There was a fair attendance, and the chair was occupied by’ the president (Mr W. J. Williams). Two new members were elected. The principal business of the meeting was an address by Mr A. Anderson on " The Romance of Plant-Hunting.” Mr Anderson, stated that without doubt planthunting was one of . the finest, most exciting, and healthiest of sports in the world. It brought the hunter into the very piesence of Nature, in all her moods and all her aspects. On the sea shore with , its cliffs, sand-dunes, and mud flats, or in the noble forests, with their giant trees and wealth of delicate' ferns, the broad, shingly river-beds, and the wide tussock grasslands, all yielded up treasures to the keen hunter. But the richest harvests could be gleaned in the alpine heights far above the bush line where snow lay for many months of the year. Here one found extensive alpine meadows in which were many of the gems of the native flora. Even in the most rugged and bieak situations one found numerous little treasures hugging whatever shelter could be _ found. The only weapons for this fascinating sport were a lens, an airtight box to carry the plants in, and a nrte book to enter essential information in. If the plants were required for garden purposes one should be careful to secure plants with good roots, remove all soil and dead leaves, wrap the plants in damp moss or grass, and keep airtight. Everyone who collected plants liked to have a few. wildings growing in his garden. This was particularly so when one had been for an extensive tour in inaccessible districts, as a few growing plants in one’s garden were the best kind

of souvenirs. If the plants were required — for herbarium specimens the work of collecting was much simpler. One had just to select suitable material—fair-sized specimens with flowers and fruit, if possible, and pack them away in one’s box. If the memory was.not to be trusted one should number the specimens and carry a note book in which to enter details of where material, etc., was found opposite a rumber corresponding to that tied on the plant. A camera- was also well worth carrying, because if one could get photographs of plants taken in their natural habitats they were extremely useful, besides forming a splendid record of the excursion. A smattering of botany was most essential, as was a nodding acquaintance with Latin names. Unfortunately the mere mention of botany seemed to chill the hearts of average citizens, because they looked upon it as one of the most dry-as-dust subjects, as being a long list of classifications and high-sounding Latin names of families, and so on. Botany was a science which endeavoured to answer every reasonable question about plants. If one began his studies from this end and sought the explanations about the physiology and work of plants generally, he would find facts that seemed like a wondrous fairy tale. There was really no need for the novice to become alarmed, but all the same it was necessary for him to become acquainted with botanical terminology. Many people asked why these long Latin names were necessary. They said that they were plain folk and the English names were good enough for them. The answer to such a statement was that scientific terms expressed in one word what could only be expressed in many words in ordinary language, and th were practically the same in any tongue. It followed that all who wished to identify their plants by reference to books must have some knowledge of botanical terms, the only possible ones for brief and complete descriptions of plants. The whole point was to begin gradually with small doses extended over long periods. The interest of finding plants in the wild state was very small when one knew nothing about plants, but if one took home an. individual plant, and after going round and worrying all relations, friends, and acquaintances, until one found out the name of it, and then settled down with a book and starting reading up its story’, one was amazed at the number of items of interesting information one stumbled across. Of course, the beginner was always more interested in flowers because of their colour and scent. In the old days people were inclined to think of man as the hub of the universe, and that all plants and animals were put on earth for his especial benefit. We had now got beyond that stage and realised that each had an important mission, namely—the perpetuation of the species, and we found that the exquisite perfumes and beautiful colourings were advertisements to insects that there was a feast awaiting them if they would only come along.

Of course, the plants wanted a little " something in return, and therefore they tried to exclude visitors who were not capable of doing them a service, and many specialised flowers were known. When one had tasted of the delights of this pastime he found that travelling was greatly augmented by lu’s interest in plants. Everyone could appreciate a beautiful view, but the pleasure was greatly enhanced if one could dissect it into its component parts and think of the individual plant associations which went t.o make it up. One could then carry away a much better idea of the view. This was particularly the case when one visited a new country for the first time, where the vegetation was composed of either old friends in 'their natural habitals, or else complete strangers. Such a pleasure must be experienced ' to be tnoroaghly understood. The enthusiastic piant hunter enjoyed to the full life in the open. While young he indulged in lengthy rambles during his spare time and during his holidays he looked to lofty peaks and distant forests for his pleasure. When he grew old and portly these strenuous excursions were too much for him,■ so he sought an easier source of entertainment in low-lying regions, or growing the plants he had collected in his garden, or studying various aspects of plant life, so planthunting was a fascinating pastime for a whole lifetime When the plant hunter was young and keen, and could afford the time, he sought to find rare plants in re-

mote and inacessible places, and under adverse conditions he might havo to endure great physical hardships, such as a day’s march through dripping bush with nothing at the end of it but a bed beneath the trees and supper to cook with wet wood, or he might be bushed in trying to get to some inviting looking peak through a tangle of dense vegetation, or he might start off on a. beautiful morning which would develop into a solid day’s rain and fog, and so instead of an enjoyable day’s fossicking round he had to sit under an overhanging rock or something and try to enjoy a lunch with a baby waterfall trickling down his back. These were some of the little worries of the game, but they were amply made up for when the hunter got out on a glorious summer’s day with plenty of time to go exploring in shady forests, by rippling creeks, or climbing to distant peSks where new plants were plentiful and the camera was working splendidly- He could sit and lunch alone with Nature and reflect how lucky he was to be there and able to appreciate what was around him. Thus, it was good to be alive. AU storms, rains, etc.j were forgotten, and only pleasant memories remained as one contemplated the wonders of Nature, and understood what Ruskin meant when he says: J'Nature worship will be found to bring with it such a sense of the presence of a Great .Spirit as no mere reasoning can acquire, or controvert, it becomes the channel of certain sacred truths which by no other means can be conveyed.” Anyone who was interested in the native plants of a country was certain to start compiling a herbarium of dried specimens. It was advisable to make a creditable collection when one was about it, and save much future trouble when one came to value the work. In all probability the individual would start to collect small fragments of flowering plants, ferns, press them and mount them m a book of some sort, adding to each the name, date, and locality where found. This was auite satisfactory and. formed a useful groundwork for the scientific study of plants—for a time—but after the noviciate stage had passed, the want of a serious collection would usually be felt. Much time was lost by collecting rubbish and poor specimens. It was worth while to gather a typical specimen, and one should always wait for good material, because nothing was more discouraging than discarding material on which one had wasted time md labour, to make room for typical specimens. A good herbarium long out-lived its collector, and therefore it was advisable to select good typical specimens of flowers md fruit if possible. Specimens should not be collected when damp. They would spread out better if slightly wilted, and should be dried by placing them between sheets of dry newspaper or blotting paper, and kept under even pressure until quite dry. The papers should be changed every second day because neglect meant mildew and decay of the more delicate parts flowers, voting leaves, etc. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded Mr Anderson for his address.

The following botanical notes on Saturday week’s outing were read:—The time 'on Saturday was far too short for all that the botanists would have liked to do. The track over the Sandymount promontory leads through a surprising wealth of native shrubs and herbs, including flax, toi toi, snowgrass (Danthonia), tutu, corokia. windblown manuka, rushes (Juncus), and sedges (Scripus and Carex). Gunnenn with its swollen nodes and bead-like fruits, is a common creeper in the sand, and here and there the pimclea is sending up short grey-leaved branches. At present the flax capsules are packed with their shining black seeds, and the succulent petals of the tutu are enclosing the ripe nut. Under shelter of friendly flax and tussock, the round-leaved spider orchid (Coysanthes) flourishes. On a steep sandy bank two heaths fruiting freely made a pretty contrast —the dwarf heath, Leucopogon Fraseri, with sharp-pointed leaves and orange drupes, and the miugi-mingi (Cyathodes acerosa), a shrub with sharp narrow leaves and white drupes. Lupines and mariam grass, here, as in so many similar places, are introduced plants helping to bind the soil. The white-flowered centauny also grows freely. The plants of the daisy order are to be found in large numbers, big ones and little ones. In more open parts, the tiny grey and green mat plants are taking their humble share in keeping the sand in place; the dainty Lagenopnora grows in patches in the grass; Erechtites, with its unpleasant odour, and the common gnaphalivm G. luter album), covered entirely with woolly hairs, were also noted. The much less common gnaphalium (G. trinerve), its three veins clearly marked on the shining upper surface of its leaves, was found among the grass in the creekbed where the water filtered through for afternoon tea. The two Oliarias (U. arboresceus and O. avicenniefolia) are plentiful—the latter in full bloom Three He.liohrysums were seen; the everlasting daisy (H. bell id io ides), 11. filicaule, and, perhaps most interesting of all the plants on the Peninsula, H. selago (the Cape Saunders Rock daisy). The last-named grows on the cliffs facing the open sea. The geological study of the Sandymount area was introduced by a brief survey of the history of the Dunedin area. It was stated that the rocks around Dunedin consisted of two distinct series lying on the fundamental Otago schists; first, the sedimentary series which were well exposed in the Kaikorai Valley; aud. second, the volcanic series which formed the hills around Dunedin. The volcanic series .was deposited on top of the sedimentary series., and, in general, would always be found lower than it, but, owing to earth fractures and differential movement and erosion, there were a few places in the volcanic area where the underlying sedimentary rocks were exposed to view at higher levels than neighbouring volcanic rocks. Some of these places were visited last yegr, viz., Nichol’s Creek and Dowling Bay, and it was part of Saturday’s objective to visit another such occurrence in the Sandymount region. This was an. outcrop of limestone similar to that at Dowling Bay, and was located on the Sandymount road just after leaving the Portobello road. Its occurrence was notable also from the fact that the fault which had been partly responsible for its emergence was clearly visible in a small cutting on the roadside. Apart from this outcrop, the other rocks of the district were volcanic, principally trachyte,, dolerite, phonolite, and trachydolerite, and as progress was made over the district their individual characteristics were described and their unitual relations- observed. A remarkable feature of this area was the occurrence of numerous dykes which usually indicate proximity to a centre of eruption; two of them were noted in a

cutting oik the road, and a third, the most remarkable of all, as the well-known natural bridge at Sandymount. Another feature of interest was the extensive terrace on the sea coast at Sandymount, which is possibly a raised sea beach. The President stated that Mr W. Martin, leader of the botanical section, and a very enthusiastic member of the club, had E one away. It was felt that they should not let Mr Martin depart without making some recognition of his services io j- e cblb and hi B scientific work in the district. It was proposed to make a small presentation to him in recognition of his work, and, with that object in view, members were invited to assist with subscriptions.