The Origin of the Irish Fauna and Flora

Abstract

WHILE the flora and fauna of Ireland are essentially those of Great Britain, differing chiefly in the absence of Germanic species, the occurrence of the so-called Ltisitanian and American elements has made Ireland an area of special interest to biologists and geologists who have sought to trace the history and origin of its floral and faunal life. The Lusitanian flora, as is well known, has its continental centre in the Iberian Peninsula, while a correspondingly small faunal group, comprising no large animals, has a somewhat similar distribution. In Ireland most of these Lusitanian plants and animals are found in the south and south-west, although some extend northwards. The American element, even smaller than the Lusitanian, is separated from its main area of distribution by the Atlantic Ocean. Reference may be made also to an Arctic-Alpine element which, although better represented in Britain, is fairly widely distributed in Ireland. The absence of certain British species and the presence of Lusitanian, American, and Arctic-Alpine species are some of the outstanding facts which any complete theory of the origin of the Irish fauna and flora must explain.