166 SYMBIOSIS 



The case of the squirrel, as that of the grazing animals, again 

 shows that symbiotic adaptation is by no means confined to insects 

 and birds, as has been asserted ; but that it extends to mammals 

 as well. True the Symbiosis between, say, honey-bee and flower 

 seems a more perfect " adaptation " than that of the mammalia 

 here concerned. But we may set against it the conscious 

 Symbiosis existing between man and his food plants, which is of 

 a high order. Evidently there are amongst all classes of organic 

 civilisation some " professionals " who are occasionally or 

 habitually addicted to charging exorbitant fees for their services. 

 We have seen however, that in the event of Symbiosis at any 

 time becoming very defective, important biological checks 

 against transgressors came almost automatically into operation, 

 tending to effect considerable regularisation in the economic 

 web of life, and tending also, in the end, to restore at least a 

 modicum of bio-economic integrit}'. 



