1892.] NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 15 



opened traps, in but one instance, that of a termite 3-8 inch in 

 length, was the visitor entrapped in its first transit. A musk 

 beetle, Brachinus, 3-8 inch long, passed six times between 

 slowly closing lobes before at length captured ; a spider 1-4 inch 

 in length escaped twice, a large curculio twice, a Harpalus four 

 times, a small grasshopper, 1-2 inch, twice. Even when the trap 

 has securely closed, the insect if active and of moderate size can 

 usually effect its escape. In the above instances the musk 

 beetle released itself within twenty minutes from time of capture, 

 the grasshopper within thirty minutes, the Harpalus in thirty 

 seconds. A second Harpalus more or less injured before suc- 

 cessfully entrapped, required nearly two hours. 



The rate of reopening is, again, a most irregular one, depend- 

 ent probably upon the degree of the plant's sensitivity. The 

 leaves of Exp. 1 varied in time of reopening between eight and 

 and forty-eight hours : one which had closed most rajiidly 

 showed unmistakable signs of o])eniug at the end of ten minutes; 

 four which had required forty-eight hours to reopen could then 

 only with the greatest difficulty be made to again close. In 

 the leaves closed by irritation with insect muscle the reopening 

 process was a far tardier one ; at the end of 24 hours two had 

 reopened ; of 48 hours ten. 



In rapidity of digestion the same individual character is main- 

 tained by the leaves. In one instance the entire soft parts of 

 an ant (3-32 inch in length) Avere well digested out within as 

 short a time as 48 hours, and the process of absorption was well 

 under way ; in another, at the end of five days the soft tissues 

 of a similar ant were still noticable, and the glands were active 

 in secretion. 



The foregoing notes summarize the plant's natural quali- 

 fications, (1) as a capturer of ground insects, (2) as an exquisitely 

 balanced trap passing curiously through cycles of activity. 

 The following note is an attempt to determine quantitatively 

 the actual feeding habits of the plant. 



First, as to the proportion of the full grown leaves at 

 one time actively occupied insectivorously Of one hundred 

 of the largest leaves counted at random, as few as six 

 (Ai:»ril 3) were found to be closed ; three, in addition, shoAved 

 the ashen and dry appearance of having already fed. Three of 

 the traps had, however, evidently closed by accident for they 

 contained particles of soil, bark and a bit of straw ; there were 

 no traces of secretion. 



After a leaf has fed the slanted trap allows the undigested 

 particles to gradually fall to the ground. 



Second, what is quantitatively the actual material entrapped. 



