418 MR. С. Е. М. SWYNNERTON ON 
contained insects, and I now repeated this examination. Nota single insect, 
large or small, of any kind whatsoever was found. Nor were any insects 
visiting the flowers ; I ascertained this by watching for a considerable time. 
It seemed likely, therefore, that it was solely for the sake of the nectar that 
the Tit had been entering the flowers so assiduously. The weather was, and 
had been, very unfavourable to insects, and even the hive-bees were not 
venturing out up to the time of the above observation. 
“Later in the day the sun broke through the clouds and brought out a 
few bees. Isaw in all one humble-bee ( Bombus terrestris *, Latr.) and five 
hive-bees visiting the flowers of this bush. The former, while I was watching 
it, took the natural opening every time, even when artificial Openings were 
present. The hive-bees varied. Three of them used mainly the natural 
openings, and only occasionally came on (and then readily enough used) the 
artificial ones ; the other two, possibly with greater experience of the latter, 
usually began by entering one or two of the terminal flowers (which were 
occasionally unpierced) by their natural openings, and then went on to search 
definitely for and use the artificial openings further back. 
* Even now, no other insects visited the flowers or were present inside 
them. 
“ The damage consists, for the most part, of perforations (a small segment 
bitten out) at the bases of the long calyx-tubes. It is present in nearly every 
Hower” (and is shown well in Plate 33. fig. 2). 
"I later visited the gooseberry bushes that I saw Tomtits enter this 
morning, and found that a large proportion of flowers in each showed what 
seemed to be distinct bird-damage. In some cases a single bite had been 
taken out of the side of the cup-shaped calyx-tube; in other eases it had 
obviously been followed by further bites removing more and more of the 
lower part of the calyx-tube, but usually still leaving the pistil intact and 
often even the rim of the tube. In a few cases the pistil had been taken off 
too. 
“© In view of the nature of my earlier observation on the Tits visiting these 
bushes, I thought it would be interesting io test the possible influence of the 
proximity of cover. The kitchen garden is a long oblong, and the row of 
gooseberry bushes, running round it about five yards in from its boundary, 
forms to all intents and purposes the fence to an inner enclosure. On three 
sides the garden is bounded by trees, on the fourth by nothing but a low, 
close-clipped privet hedge. Opposite the last, not one of the gooseberry 
bushes has had a flower damaged ; and on a path that runs transversely 
across the middle of the garden, with no trees near it, only one bush shows 
* I collected specimens of all the insects mentioned in this paper, but they were 
accidentally thrown away. Consequently there is а slight doubt with regard to any 
that are not readily distinguishable from other common species. 
