30 president's address. 



While on tlie subject of the Proteads, I may mention that, as 

 long ago as 1882, Trelease(24) made out, from the examination 

 of plants growing' in the Botanic Garden in Cambridge, Mass., the 

 structure and mode of pollination of Hakea nodosa, and of Gre- 

 villea Thelemanniana. He notes that both flowers are incapable of 

 self-pollination, and that the Hakea is probably pollinated by 

 birds or insects, and the Grevillea l)y birds. He also refers to 

 Kerner's guess as to Dryandra being pollinated by kangaroos. 



Mr. 0. Sargent has published a paper, "Biological Notes on 

 Acacia cefastrifolia{25). This plant (which Bentham considers a 

 varietv of A. mi/rtifolia), when the racemes open, secretes from 

 the gland on the phyllode at the base of the raceme, a drop of 

 nectar, and continues to do so all tlirough the time of flowering. 

 The Silver-eyes feed upon this. -'Careful examination of a flower- 

 ing-branch shows it to be well adapted for bird-pollination. No 

 hindrance is offered to the bird, as the saucer of nectar stands open 

 beside the inflorescence; yet in sipping the sweet fluid the bird is 

 sure to l)rush against the fluffy blossoms, and have its featliers 

 dusted with pollen. The next flower brushed against will receive 

 some of this pollen on its stigmas." 



Mr. Sargent has also been good enough to send me a copy of liis 

 MS. of a paper entitled, "Fragments of Westralian Plant- 

 Biology," which has been accepted for publication by a Botanical 

 Journal. The first part of this paper is concerned with ornitho- 

 phylly. He thinks it probable that the flowers suited for birds 

 have been evolved from entomophilous flowers. The Honey-eaters 

 are aggressive feeders; if the nectar is not easy to get at, they rip 

 the flower open. In that way, the flowers which were best suited 

 to birds may have persisted, and developed, while the others retro- 

 graded. He sets forth certain types of flowers as being suited for 

 bird-pollination, beginning with simple open flowers like those of 

 Nuytsia; the flowers are open, and grow in masses; and birds feed- 

 ing on them, as they do, cannot fail to pollinate the stigmas. 

 Another flower of this type is Xanthorrhcea Preissii, and he has 

 frequently seen small birds drinking the nectar. My son has seen 

 the New Holland Honey-eater feeding on X. haStilis, following the 



