THE LOBELIOIDEAE, THE PRIDE OF HAWAIIAN BOTANISTS 



These flowers bear a striking resemblance in shape to the beaks of the Drepanid birds. Nectar 

 forms the main food for the birds but it is in the long tubular flowers and hard to reach. The curved 

 beaks, however, furnish the necessary tools and, while going after the nectar, these specialized 

 birds have become important factors in insuring the fertilization of the flowers. Lobelioideae very 

 probably existed in Hawaii, with diff^erent structural characteristics, long before the Drepanid 

 birds, but the latter have no doubt been the most effective agent in spreading the former. (Fig. 33.) 



