FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB. 247 



Island where it formerly abounded. Many reasons have been given 

 for its increasing scarcity, but there is good ground to believe 

 that the alienation of Crown Lands and their cultivation is the 

 chief, and perhaps the only cause of the rapid disappearance of 

 0. lanceanum. When the lands are cleared by the small 

 proprietor or planter the forest growth is cut down and burnt, 

 and in this way hundreds of orchids of all sizes and of various 

 species perish with their natural supports. 



In this way 0. lanceanum is being rapidly exterminated and 

 with it another and much rarer Oncid with regard to which 

 latter I shall make some observations later on. 



Some persons are of opinion that the great demand from 

 abroad for this Oncidium and the ruthless manner in which it 

 is collected is the chief cause of its increasing scarcity but I beg 

 to differ from this opinion, for from actual experience I know 

 that unless the forest where an orchid is indigenous is destroyed 

 it is next to impossible to exterminate it. You must annihilate 

 its habitat in order to prevent the minute seed from springing 

 up in a genial climate, and no amount of mere collecting can do 

 this, as it is illegal to fell trees on Crown Lands, without a 

 wood-cutter's license and this the orchid collector if he be only an 

 orchid collector does not require. 



It is to be hoped, however, that such plants as may be 

 protected from destruction by having established themselves on 

 trees on Government reserves may in the course of time dissemi- 

 nate their seeds around so that the larger trees of the cultiva- 

 tion which replaces the virgin forest, may in a few years be 

 covered with a new generation of this lovely species and thus 

 save this orchid from complete extermination. 



Oncidium luridum. " The common or brown bee " 



The next Oncidium of Trinidad with which my paper 

 proposes to deal, is the well known, and much admired 0. luridum 

 better known to residents as the " Common or brown bee." 



This orchid may be said to be almost ubiquitous in this 

 Island, and is rather common on the Continent of South America 

 also. But there is no doubt that it is a very beautiful orchid 

 and were it scarcer would be as eagerly sought for as are many 

 less beautiful but rarer orchids. 



Like 0. lanceanum (which I may call its first cousin) it 

 belongs to the bulbless section of Oncidiums, and the long some- 

 what channelled acute leathery leaves of green colour sometimes 

 finely dotted with brown, spring from a knotty rootstock not 

 unlike that of Oncidium lanceanum. The roots are similar in 

 shape and colour to those of this latter orchid except that the 

 growing point is more of a yellow colour, and the long flower 

 spike which springs from the front of the base of the almost 



