160 JOHN H. LOVELL 



the flowers. In another part of the garden a female Megachile 

 melanophaea (one of the larger leaf-cutting bees), was observed 

 to visit ungarnished flowers in the normal way. At 1:15 o'clock 

 there were two honey-bees, two Vespa consobrina and the small 

 pale blue butterfly, Lycaena pseudargiolus, sucking syrup from 

 the flowers; and fifteen minutes later one honey-bee, two V. 

 consobrina and two V. germanica. The visits continued until 

 2:45 p. m., when I closed the experiment. 



The number of visits by bees and wasps received by the flowers 

 of the garden pea garnished with sugar syrup, during the time 

 they were under observation, was much greater than I had ex- 

 pected. Under the conditions I should not have been surprised 

 had there been no visits by Hymenoptera. On the night preceding 

 August 2 there had been much rain, and the following morning 

 was very foggy, so that the leaves of the pea vines at noon were 

 covered with small drops of water, which could not be distinguished 

 from drops of sugar syrup. The bees made many fruitless visits 

 to flowers without syrup and also to flowers on the wrong row. 

 But both bees and wasps soon learned to confine their attention 

 chiefly to the end of the row with garnished flowers. 



There were many small Syrphid flies, as well as larger flies, 

 flitting about among the foliage of the pea vines. Although 

 they not infrequently came to the flowers on which there was 

 sugar syrup, but little importance was attached to their visits, 

 as evidently they might be largely the result of chance. One or 

 two smaller bees belonging to the genera Sphecodes and Prosopis 

 were also among the visitors. But the larger aculeate Hymen- 

 optera, whose visits are manifestly purposive, were regarded as 

 much better adapted for observation than small, little specialized 

 insects. It was conclusively shown that an available food supply, 

 without the addition of an agreeable odor, would induce numerous 

 visits of honey-bees and social wasps to the odorless flowers of 

 Pisum sativum. 



" The many horticultural varieties, known under the name of 

 Petunia hybrida and cultivated in all gardens, have resulted, as 

 is well understood, from crossings between P. nyctaginiflora 

 Juss. and P. violacea Lindl. They offer this very interesting 

 peculiarity, from the point of view of the present work, of receiv- 

 ing no visits from the domestic bee, notwithstanding the bril- 

 liancy and dimensions of their beautiful, infundibuliform, white, 



