188 Gelehrte Gesellschaften. 



Gelehrte Gesellschaften. 



Linneau Society of London. 



Meeting of March 1, 1883. 

 Sir John Lubbock, Bart., President, in the chair. — The following 

 gentlemen were elected Fellows of the Society: — W. B. Barrett, L. .1. 

 K. Brace, J. B. Bridgman, W. 0. Chambers, W. E. Clarke, W. 

 Godden, F. H. H. Guillemard, J. E. Havers, F. M. Hocken, C. H. 

 Middleton-Wavke, James Stirling, Rev. P. W. Wyatt. — Mr. R. F. 

 Towndrow showed examples of a form ofRosa stylosa from Madresfield, 

 near Malvern. It is evergreen, and its fruits ripen in the second year. — 

 Mr. A. W. Bennett read a paper „On the Constancy oflnsects intheir 

 Visits to Flowers." He stated, as a summary, that the different classes 

 of insects show very great difference in this respect. Butterflies show but 

 little constancy , except in a few instances ; but they would appear to be 

 guided to a certain extent by a preference for particular colours. The 

 Diptera exhibit greater constancy, though by no means absolute. A much 

 greater degree of constancy is manifested by the Apidae; and this becomes 

 all but absolute in thfi hive-bee. — It is an interesting circumstance that 

 this constancy appears to increase in proportion to the part performed by 

 the insects in carrying poUen from flower to flower. A much larger number 

 of observations is, however, needed in order to determine with certainty any 

 general law, and especially a careful microscopic examination of the pollen 

 attached to the proboscis, mandibles , legs , and under side of the abdomen 

 and thorax. As respects preference for particular colours , the Lepidoptera 

 paid, while under Observation, 70 visits to red or pink flowers, 5 to blue, 

 5 to yellow, 5 to white; the Diptera 9 to red or pink, 8 to yellow, 20 to 

 white; the Hymenoptera 203 to red or pink, 126 to blue, 11 to yellow, 

 17 to white. — There followed a communication ,0n the Methodic 

 Habits of Insects when visiting Flowers" by Mr. R. M. Christy. 

 The author records in detail the movements of 76 insects whilst engaged in 

 visiting 2400 flowers. He tabulates the results, and concludes that insects 

 do possess a decided preference for a number of successive visits to the same 

 species of flowers, although this is not invariably the case. Most of the 

 observations were made on bees, which seem to perform the fertilisation of 

 at least one — half of all the flowers fertilised by insects in this country. 

 Butterflies , as a rule , seem to wander purposelessly in their flight ; never- 

 theless some species, including the Fritillaries , are fairly methodic. The 

 author believes that it is not by colour alone that insects are guided from 

 one flower to another of the same species, and the sense of smell is suggested. 

 Bees, he avers , have but poor sight for long distances , but good sight for 

 Short distances ; of 55 humble bees watched , 26 visited blue flowers ; 12 of 

 the bees were methodic in their visits and 5 not so ; 13 visited white flowers ; 

 5 were methodic and 8 not at all; 11 visited yellow flowers, of wich 5 were 

 methodic and 6 not; 28 visited red flowers, 7 were methodic, 9 nearly so, 

 while 12 were not. Mr. Christy inclines to the opinion (though admitting 

 paucity of data) that bees, in a flight from their nest, confine their visits 

 exclusively or principally to one species of plant. 



Meeting of April 5, 1883. 

 Sir John Kirk, Vice-President, in the chair. — Messrs. R. M. Barring- 

 ton, G. E. Com erford-Casey , F. W. Dickins, and E. Cambridge 

 Philipps were elected Fellows of the Society. — Mr. E. M. Holmes 

 exhibited a specimen of birch-tree sap which had been found to exude 

 from a cut brauch one inch in diameter at the rate of four ounces per hour 

 during the night, and seven to eight ounces per hour during the day, before 

 the leaf-buds had expanded; showing that the rapid rise of the sap was in 

 this case not dependent on transpiration , but probably on endosmose acce- 

 lerated by the expansion of the wood caused by solar heat. The sap had 

 been collected and analysed by Dr. Attfield, and its contents were recorded 

 in the Pharm aceutical Journal for Aprü 7. — A paper was read, ,0n 



