THE AQUARIUM, JANUARY, 1895. 



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Linnsean Society, Mr. Burbridge, an 

 observant naturalist, read a paper on 

 the subject, which throws some light 

 on the curious organization in question, 

 and is of considerable interest as illus- 

 trating the solidarity of the organic 

 world. It seems that the stalk of the 

 lower bag or ampulla-shaped pitcher is 

 swollen and hollow, and in their native 

 country most of them are perforated by 

 a species of black ant, which forms its 

 colonies in the old and dry pitcher, and 

 continually visits the fresh ones, so far 

 as can be determined, for the purpose 

 of obtaining food and water, since these 

 fresh pitchers contain a miscellaneous 

 collection of dead and decaying insects 

 of many kinds. As these pitchers are 

 perfect traps to creeping insects of ant- 

 like character by reason of the incurved 

 ridges round the throat of the pitcher, 

 these black ants ingeniously perforate 

 the stalk, and so obtain their supplies, 

 and provide a means of exit in case of 

 need. Now as to the uses of the for- 

 midable spurs which lie concealed under 

 the kidney shaped lid of the pitchers : 

 There is found in the Bornean forests, 

 where this fine pitcher plant grows, a 

 curious little animal called by the nat- 

 ives " Taoiperlilie," and by the few 

 Europeans who have ever seen it alive, 

 the "Spectre Tarsier," {Tar sier spec- 

 trum). It is a most singular and in- 

 teresting creature, about the size of a 

 rat. Its head is singularly like that of 

 a small kitten ; the eyes are large and 

 full, the body is monkey-like, and the 

 tail is slender and as long as the body, 

 but bushy at the tip, like that of a lion. 

 Its feet have curiously enlarged disk- 

 like tips, reminding one of the enlarged 

 ends of the climbing tendrils of the 

 Virginia creeper. This little animal is 

 ad insect eater, and knowing that the 

 pitchers contain entrapped insects. 



visits them pretty regularly. In the 

 case of some of the pitcher plants, the 

 insects imprisoned in their unarmed 

 urns are readily removed, but not so in 

 the species under consideration, as the 

 sharp spurs are so placed that the tar- 

 sier is sure to be pricked by them, and 

 quite sharply too, if its head is in- 

 serted under the lid for getting at 

 the interior. The main question,, 

 and the one yet to be solved, is, 

 of what use are the living ants, 

 and what end is this one species 

 of Nepenthes made to serve as the nest 

 of a peculiar species of these insects. 

 To suit its requirements not only is it& 

 very structure modified, but especial 

 precautions are taken to ward off the 

 insect-eating tarsier. The use of the 

 entrapped insects we already know, 

 for it has been demonstrated by Dr. 

 Hooker that the pitchers of Nepenthes 

 not only allure insects by a sweet secre- 

 tion at the rim and upon the lid of 

 the cup, but also that their capture, or 

 the presence of other j)artly soluble 

 animal matter, produces an increase 

 and an acidulation of the contained 

 watery liquid, which thereupon be- 

 comes capable of acting like gastric 

 juice in dissolving flesh, albumen, and 

 the like. In other words, these jjitch- 

 ers seem to be stomachs. Borneo is- 

 indeed a land of many wonders. Dr. 

 Beccari has found there a curious plant 

 {Myrmecodia) which never fully de- 

 velops until bitten by a large red ant. 

 They make their nest in the swollen 

 stem, and thence rush out to repel all 

 invaders. Dr. Beccari asserts that the 

 presence of these ants is absolutely es- 

 sential to the plant^s existence, for un- 

 less the young plants are thus attacked 

 they soon perish. 



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