Notes on the Distribution of the Pteridophytes of Suriname

In a forthcoming publication (Kramer, in prep.) floristic and taxonomic data of the pteridophyte flora of Suriname will be assembled, with keys and notes on their local distribution and ecological preference. The present paper deals with the geographical distribution of Suriname pteridophytes beyond the boundaries of Suriname (Fig. 2), a subject that lies beyond the scope of a local fern Flora. In the past, some (but relatively not very many) authors of fern Floras included a paragraph on the distribution of the taxa (Posthumus, 1928; Christensen, 1932; Backer & Posthumus, 1939). In some other fern Floras some space is devoted to ecology, but very little to geography (Holttum, 1954). In still others, considerations of a general kind on ecology and geography are altogether lacking (Vareschi, 1969). Lyell (1870), in his rather little-known book on the distribution of ferns, tried to bring together all the data known at his time; his work is now, of course, almost exclusively of historical significance.