OPHRYDE^—SERAPIADIN^— ORCHIS ij^ 



Fertilisation. See "Pollination and Fertilisation". Delpino's idea that O. mono 

 (and masculd) are more or less on the verge of extinction through the absence of 

 honey shows the danger of making deductions from a mere theory. Besides the 

 hive-bee, Darwin and Miiller saw the following visit the flowers : Bomhus lapidarius, 

 B. ftmsconim, B. confusus, B. hortorum, B. pratorum, and B. silvarum, Eucera longicornis, 

 and Osmia rufa. Some of the hive-bees bore 10-16 poUinia, and the Eucera eleven, 

 and it is certain they would never have visited the same species so frequently had 

 they not found what they wanted. Six spikes gathered by me at Verwood had no 

 less than 44 ovaries fertilised, an average of over seven to each spike. My experience 

 is that 0. morio is one of the most widely distributed and locally abundant of European 

 orchids, with several aUied species or sub-species which are equally plentiful. 

 Andrena mrvtmgula Thoms with five poUinia of 0. morio was taken by me at Sus in 

 1930 (p. 208 and PL 56, fig. 3). 



Judging by the comparatively few specimens I have seen, rose-coloured and white 

 flowers seem to be less attractive to insects than the type, but further research may 

 probably modify this. 



6. Orchis mascula L. 



PI. 40. Early Purple Orchid. Regals (Dorset) 



Soldiers' Jackets (Dorset), Kettle-cases (Isle of Wight) 



Tubers rather large, ovoid or globular; roots few, rather slender. Stem 12-35 cm. 

 (up to 50, very rarely 60 cm. abroad), erect, stout, cyhndrical, angled above, glabrous, 

 pale green (often purplish above), unspotted, in large specimens sometimes hollow 

 at the base, with 2-5 leafless sheaths. Leaves oblong-lanceolate, narrowing down- 

 wards, slightly enlarged towards the summit, acute or obtuse, keeled often folded, 

 bright or greyish green, unspotted or with large dark irregular blotches or spots, 

 very glossy beneath, less so above, with about three transparent nerves on each side 

 of the mid-rib, with fainter nerves between ; the surface sometimes wavy, giving the 

 lip a crimped appearance. Lower leaves close together, spreading, upper erect, loosely 

 clasping the stem, the uppermost thin, membranous, acute, often purpHsh. Spike 

 finally cylindric, often long (up to 1 5 cm.), rather lax, especially below, many-flowered 

 (10-45). Flowers rather large, red-violet, magenta, lilac, rose, pale pink or very 

 rarely pure white with yellowish, wliitish, or greenish throat, with a slight unpleasant 

 smell suggesting cats, sometimes becoming ofl"ensive after some time in water. Bracts 

 linear-lanceolate, acute, membranous, i -nerved, equalUng or slightly exceeding the 

 ovary, purple tinged, in wliite flowers transparent with a green nerve. Ovary sessile, 

 cylindrical, curved, twisted, often flushed violet with six ridges. Seed-capsules erect, 

 ± z\ cm. long, with prominent ridges. Side-sepals erect, aknost back to back, ob- 

 Hquely ovate-lanceolate, obtuse or acute, 1-3 -nerved, upper sepal broadly lanceolate, 



23-2 



