H i 1 deb r !vii d , Beobachtungen und Experimente an Oxalis- Arten. 35 



inust be proved. I may heere State, witliout adducing to tlie fact, 

 that in the Island of Kiusiu in Southern Japan, where only Tur- 

 pinia pomifera DC is to be found, the red-fruits of that tree are 

 freely eaten by birds, wliich, we have somc reasons to believe, had 

 never been in the habits of tasting the fruits of Bischoffia javanica Bl. 

 It would be also interesting to state that in Tiirpinia pomifera DC, 

 according to my own observations, the leaves of the young plant, 

 frequently deviate from its trifoliolate character, and become bi- 

 toliolate or unifoliolate, as the case may be. 



It is Avell-known that adaptions to certain external conditions 

 often alter the general habits of plants; among xerophytes, eertain 

 species of Eupliorhia resemble Cacti\ coast and alpine plants of 

 different ordres are often much alike. To cite only one instance: 

 a form of Schizocodon soldaneUoides Sieb, et Zucc., a pretty dwarf 

 species of Diapensiaceae, growing in the alpine regions of öhinano, 

 Hida, and other provinces of Central Japan, resembles in its general 

 habits Soldanella alpina W. of the European Alps. In the case 

 of similarity, however, between Bischoffia javanica Bl. and Turpinia 

 pomifera DC, both of which commonly grow in the forests of 

 tropical and subtropical Asia, it appears to me that there exists 

 no such external condition for its adaption, *) According to my 

 own observations ot the both plants in the Lüchü Islands, where 

 they grow togheter side by side, the resemblances between the 

 two plants were remarkable. 



What I intend in the above communication is to call the at- 

 tention of those fellow-botanists, who, residing in those countries 

 where both Bischoffia javanica Bl. and Turpinia pomifera DC. are 

 in their füll development, would make observations as well as some 

 experiments by giving the fruits of the both plants for food to 

 various kinds ot birds frequenting the places where these plants 

 grow, and. settle this interesting question of biological botany. 



Tokio, April 13, 1899. 



Einige weitere Beobachtuügen und Experimente an 



Oxalis- kil^Vi, 



Von 



Professor Dr. Friedrich Hildebrand 



in Freiburg i. B., Botanisches Institut. 



(Schluss.) 



Anders verhält es sich mit der Farbe der Blumenblätter. 

 Diese ist bei Oxalis DejJjiei ein mehr oder weniger helles Ziegel- 

 roth, Gelbroth, bei Oxalis Tiveedeana hingegen, ähnlich wie bei 



*) Cocculus lanrifolius DC. which are found in Japan (Siebold! Bürger! 

 1 1 !), Lüchü Islands (T a s h i r o !). Nepal (W a 1 1 i c h !), Kumaon (S t r a c h e y et 

 Winterbottom!)^ Himalaja (Royle! Edgeworth!), and Javt. (Horse- 



Vyinterbottom!), Himalaja (Royle! Edgeworth!), a 

 Eield!) resembles Lindera and other genera of Lauraceae. 



3* 



