METHODIC HABITS OF INSECTS WHEN VISITING FLOWERS. 85 



No. 48, where a small humble-bee visited many times both red 

 and white flowers of the same species of Trifolium. It is just 

 possible that in these cases a sense of smell may have assisted. 



During my observations on bees I have come to the conclusion 

 that they have a good sight for short distances, but a poor sight 

 for long distances. Often when visiting small flowers growing 

 many on a plant, I have seen a bee reach out and, pulling down 

 the next nearest flower, insert its proboscis. Their general 

 movements whilst actually visiting flowers lead me to the belief 

 that they see precisely what they are doing whilst so engaged. 

 But if a bee be watched whilst not in the act of visiting a flower, 

 its movements will be seen, I think, to be different. A bee seldom 

 flies straightly and directly from one flower to another unless the 

 second be very near the first, or so conspicuous that the bee can 

 hardly help seeing it. On the contrary, a bee generally goes 

 prowling about over the leaves, grass, or herbage with an irregular 

 zigzag line of flight until it comes within sight of a flower 

 belonging to the species of which it is in search. Then, too, a 

 bee which is being watched will generally allow anyone to 

 approach it closely, provided this be done steadily and quietly ; 

 but if approached roughly or quickly the bee flies off at once. 



In opposition, however, to what has been already advanced as 

 to the methodic habit of bees, I have several facts to bring forward. 

 Bees very often do not seem to be at all systematic as to the 

 number of times they visit the same flower, but often visit a 

 flower more than once, as stated in observations Nos. 3, 21, and 

 43, but especially in No. 10. In No. 20 I even caused several 

 heads of Scabiosa succisa to be twice visited by picking and again 

 presenting them to the bee. My earlier observations, which were 

 made in the autumn of 1881, seem to show that bees are less 

 methodic at that time of year than in spring and summer, when 

 many of my later observations were made, probably because there 

 are fewer flowers then out. It is said that bees are unable 

 to distinguish between some closely-allied species of flowers, 

 such as Ranunculus bulbosus, R. acris and R.repens, and Trifolium 

 fragiferum and T. repens (' Cross- and Self-fertilization of 

 Flowers,' p. 416) ; and it is very possible that hybrids are 

 thus formed, as in the genera Verbascum and Primula (' Forms 

 of Flowers,' pp. 55 and 75). It is further noticeable in several of 

 my observations (Nos. 34, 48, 55, 63, 68, and 70) that just before 



