308 ANNUAL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY. 



other is the earliest animal organism. — Quart. Jouni. of Science^ 

 Jan., 18G9. 



Fertilization of Florcers hy Insects. — Acconlino^ to 'Mr. T, H. 

 Farror ("Annals of Natural IIi>tory," Octolior, 18().S), tlio parts 

 ot" the ilower of the scarh't-runner are so arniu^i^ed tiiat a bee, 

 aiightini^ on it in searcii of lioney, of necessity shakes any pollen 

 oft" his proboscis on to the stiofma; while, at the same lime, his 

 proboscis, as h(» withdraws it, is coven-d with the poll< n ot this 

 llower, and is thus i)rei)arcd to fertilize another. In Lobelia, the 

 parts are so arranged that the pollen is ejected, in small quantities 

 at a time, on the exact spot of the back of the visiting bee on 

 which it should be placed to be carried to the stigma of another 

 llower, — the sligma being so arranged that, at the next lh)\ver 

 visted by the bee, it sweeps off" the previously acijuired pollen. 



Evaporation hy Plants. — In a memoir presentetl to the French 

 Academy by M. Deherain, experiments are given with the view 

 of proving that the evaporation of water by the leaves of plants 

 takes place under conditions entirely different from those which 

 regulate the evaporation of an inert bod}', as it occurs in a satu- 

 rated atmosphere ; that it is especially ettected by light ; and that 

 the luminous rays elTicacious in causing the decomposition of car- 

 bonic acid by the leaves are also those which favor evaporation. 

 The yellow and reil rays, which have little action on photo- 

 graphic paper, act with most intensity in cansing'the reduction of 

 carbonic acid, while the blue and green rays decomjiose the chlo- 

 ride of silver, and have no action on the leaves. These experi- 

 ments conlirm the old observation of Guettard, that the hard and 

 smooth ii})per part of the leaves evaporates the most water; 

 Boussingault has shown that the greatest amount of carbonic acid 

 is decomj)osed by the same portion. It is interesting to observe 

 these intimate relations between the two capital functions of 

 leaves, the decomjjosition of carbonic acid and evaporation. — 

 Comptes Rendus, Aug. 9, 1869. 



Organisms in Hot Springs. — Mr. A. M. Edwards has recently 

 drawn attention to the occurrence of diatomaeeaj, with the hairs 

 of insects, in some fine sandy deposit obtained from a geyser. 

 Dr. L. Lindsay enumerates 7 genera of confervjB and diatoma- 

 cea3 from the geysers of Iceland, and observes that the abundance 

 of diatoms in the thermal waters (»f Europe warrants the expec- 

 tation of large additions to the leelamlie flora from this source. 

 Dr. Cohn has described oscillatoria3 from hot springs containing 

 sulphates, and ascribes the elimination of sulphuretted hydrogen 

 to the action of these orjxanisms. Mr. Edwards suggests the im- 

 portanee of an examination of the hot sulphureous springs ot Cali- 

 fornia for these organisms and for iliatoms ; it would be very in- 

 teresting to ascertain by comparison of specimens from sulphureous 

 and nei<i;hboring fresh-water springs what modif\ ing effect the 

 thermal conditions have had on the form of the various species; 

 in this way we may hojDe to arrive at a knowledge of the exact 

 relations of livinir forms to the conditions of their existence. 

 — Quart. Journ. of Science. 



Jieproduciion of Diatoms. — In the " Quaiterly Journal of 



