To J. D. Hooker [14 November 1858]1
There are 84 genera common to Europe & marked x = extra-tropical or chiefly so.— Could there be any (certainly few I presume) genera added to these, equally extratropical, but found only in Asia or North America, for they would in fact come into same category.
These 84 genera (or more, if there are N. Asiatic or N. American genera) contain how many species in Australia? And of such species in these 84 genera, how many are endemic to Australia & how many common to Europe (& N. Asia or N. America)?
This would be very interesting to me, as it would show how many species had probably been there manufactured since glacial Epoch.—2
Of the species included in the 84 genera how many are annual? Is it a large proportion compared to the proportion in Europe? This bears on passage of the Tropics: but perhaps it would be best to take only the species which are terrestrial.3
In your list of species common to (Victoria & Tasmania) & Europe. Are those marked ** lowland Indian plants;4 I suppose so.— It would greatly add to interest of list to me, if you would append
dot in circle
for annual & some mark for aquatic & sub-aquatic. Was it not very difficult to eliminate the introduced plants.?
CD annotations
Footnotes
Bibliography
Loudon, John Claudius. 1841. An encyclopædia of plants. London: Longman, Orme, Brown, Green, and Longmans.
Summary
An enclosure sent with the letter to JDH, 14 November [1858] (Correspondence vol. 7) - questions and comments on lists of European species found in south-west Australia and Tasmania, and European genera found in Australia.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-2361F
- From
- Charles Robert Darwin
- To
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- Source of text
- DAR 50: E55–6
- Physical description
- Amem 2pp † (JDH) CD note
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 2361F,” accessed on 17 August 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-2361F.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 13 (Supplement)