Among these are the dahlia, the passioii-Hower, the crown-imperial, and 

 especially the oleander. That the flowers of the dahlia have a narcotic 

 action both upon humble-bees and hive-bees was first pointed out, I believe, 

 by the Rev. L. Jeuyns, in his ' Observations in Natural History' (p. 20'2). 

 He mentions that bees which visit these flowers are ' soon seized with a sort 

 of torpor,' and often die unless speedily removed. He quotes also a writer 

 in the ' Gardener's Chronicle,' who pronounces the cultis'ation of the dahlia 

 ' incompatible with the success of the bee-keeper.' I find it also recorded 

 that the passion-flower stupifies humble-bees ; that bees of all kinds avoid 

 the crown-imperial and the oleander, and that the honey of the latter is fatal 

 to flies. I cannot call to mind that I ever saw a butterfly or a moth settled 

 upon the flowers of this shrub in Hungary and Dalmatia, where it is very 

 abundant. It seems not unimportant to ascertain whether the above- 

 mentioned phenomena have been verified by other observers ; whether any 

 other insects, in such cases, undertake the functions generally exercised by 

 bees, and whether other flowers have a similarly noxious or deadly action 

 upon insects." 



Papers read, ^c. 



The Secretary also read a paper communicated by Miss E. A. Ormerod, 

 entitled " Observations on the Effects of low Temperatures^ on Larvae," in 

 which the authoress comes to the conclusion that of all the species belonging 

 to diff'erent Orders examined during the severe frosts of the past winter, 

 none were materially injured by the low temperatures to which they were 

 subjected. Specimens in illustration of the paper were exhibited. 



Mr. Stainton remarked that although he fully agreed with Miss Ormerod 

 that insects did not suffer directly from cold, yet he knew of two instances 

 during the past winter in which a great loss of insect-life had ensued, owing 

 to the leaves tenanted by mining larvae having been killed by the severe 

 frost. It was the ha])it of the larva of Lithocolletis messnniella to feed up 

 during the winter months in the leaves of the evergreen oak {Quercus Ilex), 

 and the effect of the extreme cold had been to kill the leaves of many trees 

 of Q. Ilex, which were now quite leafless, although others similarly placed 

 seemed to have escaped unhurt. Where a leaf containing a mining larva 

 had been killed, the latter, unless capable of quitting the leaf to seek fresh 

 food, — a power which no larva of the genus Lithocolletis possessed, — had 

 necessarily died of starvation. On those trees of Q. Ilex which had escaped 

 injury from the cold, Mv. Stainton had found that these larvae were much 

 less developed than was usual at this period of the year, and hence he 

 anticipated that the moths which should appear at the end of April would 

 be delayed beyond their usual time. The other instance he had noticed 

 was that of the larva of Tischeria mar(jinea, which fed up during the winter 

 months in the leaves of the bramble ; in the neighbourhood of Lewisham 



