Greinar (Vísindafélag Íslendinga) - 01.01.1967, Blaðsíða 63

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low the summit. The dominant species of this marginal
zone is Festuca rubra 58%, with the major associated
species Poa pratensis 30% and Agrostis tenuis 10% (Table
IV, Sudurey 2). In the year 1965 point-measurement taken
at the most northernly part of the island, close to the
cliff edge, showed Poa pratensis to be dominant with 53%,
while Festuca rubra was 43%. The marginal strip is very
distinct there.
The principal association on the island is the puffin
colony, where the dominant species is Festuca rubra 58%
and associated pecies Stellaria media 32%, Poa pra-
tensis 2.5% and Matricaria maritima 7.7%. In number
of species Sudurey resembles Ellidaey, though not much
more than half of its size. Altogether 23 species of vas-
cular plants have been found there. Some moist spots oc-
cur on the island, namely on the sloping marginal zone
to the north. At this area are present almost all the spe-
cies of vascular plants to be found on the island, in addi-
tion to several species of moss. The proportion of Euro-
pean species is higher than on the larger islands (Table
III).
Brandur
The island has an obvious crater formation and is only
0.1 sq. km in area. There is no level ground on it, only
steep grass slopes and cliffs. The principal association is
the puffin colony vegetation. Its dominant species is
Festuca rubra 60%, associated species Matricaria mari-
tima 23% and Stellaria media 9% (Table IV, Brandur 1
and 2). There is no appreciable dry meadow land on the
island. Poa pratensis grows only on a patch of a few
square metres on the crest of the island, where it covers
about 27%. There is virtually no coastal cliff vegetation,
but it is worth noting that there is a small skerry off
the main island — actually a crater plug about 5 m high —
where Armeria vulgaris grows in dense clusters, together
with Cochlearia officinalis and Puccinella maritima. Ar-
meria is comparatively rare in the coastal cliff vegetation