THE FLOWER. I 5 



proboscis can be distinctly seen, such as Rhingia and 

 Empis also occur. There may be beetles which devour 

 the tissues and carnivorous insects as well. It is the 

 fashion in most works dealing with the services of 

 insects to plants to exclude from the list of useful forms 

 those insects which devour parts of the flowers, and 

 those also which live on other flower-haunting insects ; 

 but every kind of insect which is found upon the flower 

 does its share in the carrying of pollen. It is important 

 lor such observations to remember that one must remain 

 perfectly still for a few minutes to allow the visitors to 

 gain confidence. 



The following are some of the most typical flower- 

 classes, arranged according to the character of their 

 visitors : 



(i.) The Veronicas, Myosotis, Geranium moUe, and 

 G. dissectum are good examples of Hover-fly flowers. 



(ii.) The smaller bees are not very important in 

 Scotland. They are found, however, on Compositae, 

 Jasione, Cardamine pratensis, and flowers of a similar 

 type. Very often these bees and the Hover-flies are 

 the special visitors of small pink or blue flowers in 

 which the honey is more or less concealed. 



(iii.) Butterflies visit any conspicuous flower, but 

 they are by no means industrious, and readily change 

 from one kind to another. They have a very long 

 proboscis, which is coiled into a spiral, carried under 

 the head when flying. Typical butterfly flowers, there- 

 fore, have a long and narrow tube down which the 

 proboscis can go, and also a broad landing-place on 

 which the butterfly can stand during the operation. 

 A good example is the Ragged Robin, of which the 

 " cabbage white " butterfly is very fond. 



(iv.) Night-flying moths are much more important 



