Chap. X\n. UTEICULARIA NEGLECTA. 395 



CHAPTER XVII. 



Utriculakia. 



Utricularia neglecta — Structure of the bladder — The uses of the several 

 parts — Number of imprisoned animals — Manner of capture — 

 The bladders cannot digest animal matter, but absorb the products 

 of its decay — Experiments on the absorption of certain fluids by 

 the quadrifid processes — Absorption by the glands — Summary 

 of the observation on absorption — Development of the bladders — 

 Utricularia vulgaris — Utricularia minor — Utricularia clandestina. 



I WAS led to investigate the habits and structure of 

 the species of this genus partly from their belonging 

 to the same natural family as Pinguicula, but more 

 especially by Mr. Holland's statement, that " water 

 insects are often found imprisoned in the bladders," 

 which he suspects " are destined for the plant to feed 

 on." * The plants which I first received as Utricularia 

 vulgaris from the New Forest in Hampshire and from 

 Cornwall, and which I have chiefly worked on, have 

 been determined by Dr. Hooker to be a very rare 

 British species, the Utricularia neglecta of Lehm.f I 

 subsequently received the true Utricularia vulgaris 

 from Yorkshire. Since drawing up the following 

 description from my own observations and those of my 

 son, Francis Darwin, an important memoir by Prof. Cohn 



* The 'Quart. Mag. of the f I am much indebted to the 



High Wycombe Nat. Hist. Soc' Rev. H. M. Wilkinson, of Bistern, 



July 1868, p. 5. Delpino (' Ult. for having sent me several fine 



Osservaz. sulla Dicogamia,' &c. lots of this species from the New 



1868-1869, p. 16) also quotes Forest. Mr. Ealfs was also so kind 



Crouan as having found (1858) as to send me living plants of the 



crustaceans within the bladders same species from near Penzance 



of Utricularia vulgaris. in Cornwall. 



