XVI International Botanical Congess

Data on the distribution of pteridophyte species in the Eastern Caribbean were extracted from Proctor's 1977 (Lesser Antilles and Barbados) and 1989 (Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands) floras. These data do not conform to the expected species-area relationship. Little evidence was found to support direct environmental control over the observed distribution pattern. It is proposed that human activity has contributed directly, and indirectly, to the recorded distribution.