SHORT CUTS ТО NECTARIES ВУ BLUE TITS. 421 
as well as those growing near cottages and in friends’ gardens. Ihave nearly 
everywhere—and at points some miles apart—found the same damage, the 
chief exceptions being in bushes growing quite close up to cottages. In the 
garden of my friend Mrs. Johnston of Glynn, three miles away, I con- 
firmed an interesting observation that [ have already described. We were 
examining the currant bushes (Ribes nigrum, Linn.) for perforations, and found 
попе. On checking this observation by examining a line of gooseberries 
alongside, we found none there either. I looked round : no trees. At the 
end of the gooseberry row (the currants did not extend so far) was a clump 
of trees, and it was only opposite these that the gooseberry flowers of that 
row showed damage. Elsewhere, where the garden was bordered by trees, 
nearly all the bushes had damaged flowers. 
* In the same garden were several periwinkle flowers that showed what 
appeared to be distinct bird-damage at the bases of their corollas, inflicted 
probably by a rather larger bird than a Blue Tit. 
“In all cases I have examined the interior of many of the flowers for small 
insects and, with the exception already stated, have always failed to find them. 
`Т have made but few further observations on the birds themselves. А 
Cole Tit (Parus hibernicus, presumably, of Ogilvie-Grant) came down to a 
gooseberry bush the day before yesterday, and remained in it for three or 
four minutes before returning, but I was not near enough to be sure it was 
entering the flowers. Hive-bees, also humble-bees of three species (Bombus 
terrestris, D. lapidarius, Latr., and В. muscorum, Latr.—the last the least), 
queen wasps (Vespa vulgaris), and two flies (dark Eristalis tena, Latr., 
and Calliphora erythrocephala, Rob.-Desv.) have been regular visitors : of 
these the drone fly is the least common, but I have on several occasions 
seen it entering gooseberry flowers either by their natural openings or by 
breaches, while its model, the hive-bee, in larger numbers, was entering others 
close beside it. The yellow fly (Scatophaga stercoraria, Meig.), so abundant 
on the first fine day, has also been present, but only toa slight extent despite 
the continuance of the good weather. 
‘My continued observations on the attitude of each of these various 
insects to the damaged flowers have fully confirmed what I have already 
noted with regard to them. Bees have been on the whole thoroughly 
content to use “the natural opening, and I should not say that the damage 
inflicted by the birds is likely (except where unusually severe) to be very 
prejudicial to the fertilization of the flowers under present circumstances—— 
г. е., Where bees are in sufficient numbers practically to ensure that each 
flower will receive visits before the nectaries dry up. I have seen the bees 
visit by their natural openings even flowers that had recently had their 
alyx-tube torn nearly right round, its upper rim, carrying the pistils and 
stamens, remaining nevertheless intact and more or less in position. And 
LINN. JOURN.— BOTANY, VOL. XLIII. 2G 
