growing on the bark of the beech, which is a
staple article of food among the Fuegians--probably the only instance
where a fungus is the bread of a people.

It is generally conceded that the potato originated in southern Chile,
as it is found growing wild in Chiloe and neighbouring islands and on
the adjacent mainland. The strawberry is also indigenous to these
latitudes on both sides of the Andes, and Chile is credited with a
species from which the cultivated strawberry derives some of its best
qualities. Maize and quinoa (_Chenopodium quinoa_) were known in Chile
before the arrival of Europeans, but it is not certain that they are
indigenous. Species of the bean and pepper plant are also indigenous,
and the former is said to have been cultivated by the natives. Among
the many economic plants which have been introduced into Chile and
have become important additions to her resources, the more prominent
are wheat, barley, hemp and alfalfa (_Medicago sativa_), together with
the staple European fruits, such as the apple, pear, peach, nectarine,
grape, fig, olive and orange. The date-palm has also been introduced
into the southern provinces of the desert region. Among the marine
productions on the southern coast, a species of kelp, _Macrocystis
pyrifera_, merits special mention because of its extraordinary length,
its habit of clinging to the rocks in strong currents and turbulent
seas, and its being a shelter for innumerable species of marine
animals. Captain FitzRoy found it growing from a depth of 270 ft.

_Fauna._--The fauna of Chile is comparatively poor, both in species
and individuals. A great part of the northern deserts is as barren of
animal life as of vegetation, and the dense humid forests of the south
shelter surprisingly few species. There are no large mammals in all
this extensive region except the Cetacea and a species of the
_Phocidae_ of southern waters. Neither are there any dangerous species
of Carnivora, which are represented by the timid puma (_Felis
concolor_), three species of wildcats, three of the fox, two of
_Conepatus_, a weasel, sea-otter and six species of seal. The rodents
are the most numerously represented order, which includes the _coypu_
or nutria (_Myopotamus coypus_), the chinchilla (_Chinchilla
laniger_), the tuco-tuco (_Ctenomys brasiliensis_), a rabbit, and 12
species of mice--in all some 12 genera and 25 species.