THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 71 



ous advertisements of "divining rods," "dip-needles" and 

 '''Spanish needles" to be used exactly as twigs of witch 

 hazel would be. — Ed.] 



THE FERTILIZATION OF CALOPOGON 

 PULCHELLUS. 



This beautiful orchid is an inhabitant of open bogs, 

 and wliere it finds a deep bed of sphagnum wnth plenty of 

 ■w^ater beneath, flourishes in great profusion. The out- 

 standing characteristic of this species, which easily dis- 

 tinguishes it from any other of our Orchidaceae, is the 

 position of th€ labellum, which, on account of there being 

 no tv^ist in the ovary, is uppermost. This peculiarity is 

 noted by the Gray, but in Britton and Brown not only is 

 no reference made to it in the text, but the diagram is in- 

 correct, as it shows the column uppermost- The repre- 

 sentation of the labellum, wdiich is given separately, is also 

 erroneous as the triangular dilation at the base is omitted, 

 as are also the bracket-like ridges. 



On account of the unique position of the labellum and 

 the ver^^ open character of the flower, I thought that the 

 method of fei'tilization would prove interesting and deter- 

 mined to investigate it. The w^ay in which it is accom- 

 plished is as follows : — The bee alights upon the labellum, 

 which bends near the base (the three bracket-like ridges 

 prevent it doing so elsewhere) until the back of the bee is 

 in contact with the column. The bee, which is of course 

 up-side-down, sups the nectar secreted in the glands at the 

 base of the column. As it withdraws, its back opens the 

 operculum of the anther and a poUinium (or several) ad- 

 heres to its back. On visiting the next flower the pollinium 

 slips past the convex surface of the closed operculum, but 

 as the bee withdraws, the pollinium is caught by the slight 

 break of the stigma and adheres to it, the bee meanwhile 

 receiving another pollinium from the anther of this flower. 

 — .4. B. Klagh, in Ottawa Naturalist. 



