CARYOPHYLLEAE 193 



480. S. uliginosa Murr. (MacLeod, BoL Jaarb. Dodonaea, Ghent, vi, 1894, 

 pp. 164-5; Knuth, 'Blutenbiol. Beob. a. d. nordfr. Ins./ p. 145; Schulz, 'Beitrage/ 

 I, pp. 22-3.) MacLeod describes plants of this species in Belgium as possessing 

 inconspicuous protandrous flowers, with petals shorter than the sepals. The outer 

 stamens first mature, and remain in the middle of the flower during the whole 

 period of anthesis, while the inner ones curve outwards. After dehiscence, the styles 

 develop, and the spreading stigmas come into contact with the outer anthers. 

 Towards the end of anthesis the outer stamens, in contact with the stigmas, also 

 incline inwards, so that automatic self-pollination is always assured. 



The flowers are more or less protandrous in Denmark (Warming) and at 

 Halle, but they are homogamous during autumn in the latter locality (Schulz). 

 Schulz found them to be commonly homogamous and automatically self-pollinated 

 in the Riesengebirge. Besides hermaphrodite flowers, this observer also noticed 

 female ones, distributed gynodioeciously, or more rarely gynomonoeciously. 



Visitors. MacLeod observed an Empid in Flanders (Bot. Jaarb. Dodonaea, 

 Ghent, vi, 1894, p. 165). 



In Dumfriesshire, several flies have been recorded (Scott-Elliot, ' Flora of 

 Dumfriesshire,' p. 29). 



137. Moenchia Ehrh. 



Small white protogynous flowers, with half-concealed nectar. 



481. M. erecta Gaertn. Mey. et Scherb. According to Schulz (' Beitrage,' II, 

 p. 51), some of the stamens in this species are usually not developed. Even 

 in the bud the four (more rarely three or five) stigmas are receptive. When the 

 flowers are open the stigmas but rarely come into contact with the anthers : automatic 

 self-pollination is therefore not very likely to occur. In dull weather, however, 

 effective autogamy takes place in pseudo-cleistogamous closed flowers. During 

 bright sunshine nectar is secreted in tolerable abundance. 



Visitors. Schulz only saw a few flies. 



138. Malachium Fries. 

 Flowers white, protandrous, with half-concealed nectar. 



482. M. aquaticum L. ( = Cerastium aquaticum Z.). (Herm. Mviller, 'Fertili- 

 sation/ p. 133, 'Weit. Beob./ II, p. 230; Knuth, 'Bloemenbiol. Bijdragen'; Kirchner, 

 'Flora v. Stuttgart/ p. 239; Schulz, 'Beitrage/ I, p. 23; Ludwig, D. bot. Monatschr., 

 Arnstadt, vi, 1888, p. 5, Bot. Centralbl., Cassel, viii, 1881, p. 79; Kerner, ' Nat. Hist. 

 PI./ Eng. Ed. 1, II; Warnstorf, Verh. bot. Ver., Berlin, xxxviii, 1896.) Hermann 

 Miiller states that the mechanism of the protandrous flowers resembles that of Stellaria 

 Holostea. The petals are about \\ times as long as the sepals. Should insect- 

 visits fail, the ends of the spreading (3-5) stigmatic branches regularly come into 

 contact with the pale anthers, to which pollen still remains clinging. According 

 to Schulz, self-pollination is very rare; while Kerner has observed that it occurs 

 towards the end of anthesis, at the time when the flowers begin to close. 

 Gynodioecism has been observed (Ludwig), rarely gynomonoecism (Schulz) ; but 

 not in Denmark, according to Warming. The petals of the female flowers are 



