BOTANISKA NOTISER 1940, LUND 1940.

History of botanical exploration in Alaska and
Yukon territories from the time of
their discovery to 1940.

By ERIC HULTÉN.

(Meddelanden fran Lunds Botaniska Museum, N:r 50.)

        The botanical exploration of Alaska started in 1741, when STELLER, who accompanied BERING on the journey when Alaska was discovered, landed on Kayak I. STELLER, who had at last reached the goal of his long journeys, was eager thoroughly to investigate the new land, but to his intense grief he had to be content with six hours only devoted to the study of the flora of the new world. BERING, who was in charge of the expedition, did not allow him to go ashore with the first boat sent to get fresh water, and later threatened to leave him there if he did not return with the boat which was sent to fetch him. Nevertheless, STELLER was able to collect 141 species and to write a manuscript on the flora of Alaska with the title: »Catalogus plantarum intra sex horas in parti Americanae septenlrionalis iuxta promontorium Eliae observatarum anno 1741 die 21 Julii sub gradu latitudinis 59». A duplicate of this manuscript, copied by an unknown hand, is still in existence. This manuscript thus contains the first written information about the flora of Alaska. On his way back to St. Petersburg STELLER died at Tyumen in W. Siberia, and his collections were for the most part lost.  STELLER therefore never had an opportunity of publishing his results from this journey of discovery, and his manuscript lay buried and forgotten in a Russian archive until it was published as late as in 1936 by STEJNEGER in his fascinating biography of STELLER.
        BERING`s expedition consisted of two ships, both of which had a naturalist on board. STELLER was attached to the vessel St. Peter under the command of Commander BERING, while Louis DELISLE DE LA CROYÉRE, a Professor of Astronomy, travelled on the ship St. Paul. This ship also reached the Alaskan coast, but DE LA CROYÉRE died on the day after the ship had returned to Kamchatka, and nothing is