i 7 4 OPHRYS. [CHAP. 



masses, are united into a single saddle-shaped body. 

 The lower lip is furnished with two prominent ridges, 

 which serve to guide the proboscis of the insect into 

 the orifice of the nectary. It is of course important 

 that the proboscis should not enter obliquely, for in 

 that case the pollen masses would not occupy exactly 

 the right position. 



Following Darwin and other botanists, I have 

 applied to the spur of Orchis the term " nectary." 

 As a matter of fact, however, the flowers of this 

 genus produce no honey ; whence Sprengel applied 

 to them the term " Scheinsaftblumen " or " Sham- 

 honey-flowers." Darwin does not, however, think that 

 moths (by which the flowers of this group are prin- 

 cipally fertilised) could be so deceived for generation 

 after generation ; and as he has observed that the 

 membrane of the interior of the spur is very delicate, 

 and the cellular tissue extremely juicy, he suspected 

 that insects possibly pierce the membrane, and suck 

 the juicy sap lying beneath. His suggestion has 

 been confirmed by H. Miiller, and he himself in a 

 subsequent memoir (" Ann. and Mag. of Nat. His.," 

 1869, p. 143) speaks confidently on the point. Del- 

 pino, on the contrary, is confident that the species 

 examined by him (O. sambucina, O. morio, O. mascula, 

 and O. maculata) do not secrete honey either on or 

 under the epidermis. 



The flowers belonging to the genus Ophrys are 

 formed somewhat on the same plan as those of Orchis, 

 but they have no spur, and the rostellum is double. 

 The Bee orchis (O. apifera), Fig. 124, however, differs 

 widely from the other allied British species. The 

 two pouch-formed rostellums, the viscid disk, and 



