1916-17.] BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH 137 



My Loch Leven specimens are both males, as were also, 

 I believe, all the others at the coral-root flowers, on the 

 nectar of which they were doubtless feeding. Unfortun- 

 ately I did not think of observing how they reached the 

 hidden nectar, but one might conjecture that the long pro- 

 boscis — a characteristic of the genus Empis — would be 

 useful in this connection. Empids, of both sexes, besides 

 sucking nectar, prey also on small insects, chiefly Diptera. 

 In the use of this insect prey, a very remarkable habit in 

 relation to courtship has been investigated by Mr. A. H. 

 Hamm (see report by Professor Poulton, in Ent. Mo. Mag., 

 1913, p. 177). In some species the male, as they play in the 

 air, presents the female with a fly which she carries about 

 and sucks during pairing. In others the gift takes the 

 form of a coccoon which he has spun about the fly. Or 

 the plaything may consist of some such object as the 

 stamen of a buttercup. 



Emins snowdoniana is a small, blackish, somewhat 

 shining fly, with pale smoky-brown wings. Length (head 

 and body) about 5 mm.; expanse of wings about 9 mm. 

 It is probably not uncommon in early summer on meadows 

 and moors in the Edinburgh district. Besides the Loch 

 Leven examples, I have a female taken above Silverburn, 

 on the south side of the Pentland Hills, May 27, 1895, and 

 a male from Bavelaw Moss, to the north of the same range, 

 May 20, 1904. 



In the case of Goody era repeiis, R. Br., Knuth states that 

 only humble bees (e.g. Borahus pratorum, L., in North 

 Scotland, and B. mastrucatus, Gerst., in the Alps) had so far 

 been observed as visitors to its flowers ; but that Miiller 

 " is inclined to think, however, that the true pollinators 

 are small, short-tongued insects, to which the structure of 

 the flower is adapted." On August 7, 1909, happening to 

 pass through a pine wood in East Lothian where this 

 interesting orchid grows, I noted the following insect- 

 visitors to the flowers : — viz. Bombus pratorum, L., a good 

 many ; B. lucorum, L., many ; and two hover-flies, Syrphus 

 civctus, Zett., and Platychirus albimanus, F., one of each. 

 The visitors thus comprise Diptera as well as bees. 



Adjoining the same pine wood, some plants of Listera 

 ovata, R. Br., were in fine flower, and furnished the following 



