REPRODUCTION 



111 



dispersal of its seeds, e.g., by squirting them out, as 



in the " squirting cucumber," or by slinging them 



to a distance, as in the geranium (Fig. 57). In the 



former case the motive power 



is the elasticity of the fruit wall 



stretched to its utmost limit by 



the pressure exerted by the 



swollen contents of the ripe 



fruit ; in the latter it is due to 



the drying and sudden rupture 



of part of the fruit-wall. 



In some cases it is believed 

 that insectivorous birds are de- 

 luded into carrying off fruits or FIG. 

 seeds on account of their like- 

 ness to insects, dropping them 

 at some distance on discovering their mistake. 

 Examples are seen in the castor-oil seed, the seeds 

 of Jatropha, and the fruits of Scorpiurus (Fig. 58). 



