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#38 A dewy forest on
the ridge of Serra d'Estrella,
in the province of Sebastianopolis, today the State of Rio
de Janeiro.
Latin translation by
Ben Hennelly
Etching 30 On Serra d'estrella, Star Ridge
From the ridge of granite or foliaceous granite that forms the Serra
d'Estrella, numerous streams flow down through narrow chasms.
Amidst rocks scraped from oldest memory by the force of the waters,
and therefore made smooth, lies ground now of red mud, which we mentioned last in connection to etching #37, and now of
thin, black soil. Thefecundity of that soil, the mild climate and the
gentle warmth of the air, into which rise both vapors from the sea and
exhalations from rapid fountains -- all these things bring it about
that the entire multitude of plants is resplendent with a perennial
abundance of leaves, and offers the traveler very welcome coolness above
the roar of the torrents. The accurate art of our illustrator, Benjamin
Mary, represents such a setting very well. Here you lack those tall
trees that shade the sides of the mountains.You see only smaller shrubs
and bushes between the rocks and sticking up above them, or the ones
that hang down from the peaks of nearby trees in impenetrable arbors
and extremely thick garlands, which often entwine the structure of the
branches in such a way that they wrap around altogether the other species
of foliage. Hardly anything like this is seen in Europe,
even in the most hidden recesses of the forests, unless you happen to
recall some group of very aged pines that, untouched by the axe, have
been wrapped from above in a dense weaving of lichens (Usnea
barbata, Evernia jubata) or Clematis.
 
Clematis caerulea and Bignonia unguis
 
Tillandsiae recurbatae and Paullinia pinnata
In this region of #38, those Tillandsiae
recurbatae, which are small-stemmed with broad, hairy leaves,
and several other similar species take the place of our lichens, veiling
the foliage with a supple hoariness across vast areas. Garlands of phanerogamic plants -- namely, Mikaniae, Serjanae, Paulliniae, various Bignoniaceae -- are distinguished by their varied condition of greenness and differing
abundance of fragrant flowers.
 
Bignonia venusta and Serjania paniculata
Then there are Cucurbitaceae, Convolvulaceae and wrapping Rubiaceae (Sabicea, Emmeorhiza) and Apocyneae (Echites, Parsonsia,
etc.). From the Rubiaceae are commonly found also some that are not wrapped: such as Palicoureae, Psychotriae and Augustae,
nearthe torrents; further, unless I err, the illustrator has also presented
an herbaceous plant of this species, Coccocypselus -- whose deep-blue berries and rosy leaves hold the botanist's attention
-- crawling across the muddy wall that covers over a heap of rocks on
the viewer's left. Here are Costus, Begonia with its slanting
leaves, and Nephrolepsis
neglecta; then on the edge of this side, right next to the
water, is a fern, Asplenium
regulare, which is seen very often in these humid defiles both
standing up high and hanging down from trees. Beside the long-stretching
foliage of Nephrolepsis appears Polypodium
crassifolium and a large clump of Asplenium
Nidi whose fronds, divided in the manner of a full basket,
often fill six feet in length there. The small tree with broad leaves
that rises behind the fern seems to be Coccoloba.
Coccoloba gigantea
 
Apleniumpalmatum and Diplazium pulcherimum
In front on the other
side, to the right, you again will see several moisture-loving ferns: Diplazium pulcherrimum, Aspidium violascens, and Blechnum brasiliense,
this one sticking up above the ground with a short stem. In back the
artist meant to depict a broad-leafed bush of Vernoniae,
and a bush of Erythroxylus with thick foliage. Whether the large clumps of long, pointed leaves
are Bromeliaceae Monocotyledon,
or Irideae, or Cyperaceae, I shall leave
undecided. Profuse garlands of very dense vines
shade the edge of the etching in such a way that the few branches of
the Urostigma tree,
endowed with large leaves, are scarcely able to break through to the
light of the sky. In these valleys filled with moist air, you will often
find tree leaves and branches covered with Jungermanniae and the cobwebby covering of Coenogonium
Linkii, which is of a nature ambiguous between that of algae,
lichen and fungus, developed to a varying degree. Nearer the equator
in a similar place Cora pavonia occurs in a similar manner, as if a parasite.
Urostigma tree
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