Planche 6. 

 Aeonlts. 



Les Aconits appartiennent > & la famille des 

 Renonculacees, ils sont caracterises comine voici : 



Les feuilles sont fortement divisees. Les 

 fleurs possedent un calice petalo'ide, qui joue 

 lo role d'un appareil d'attraction pour les in- 

 sectes, tandis que les petales sont transformes 

 en nectaires. La fecondation des Aconits se 

 fait seulement par les bourdons. 



Toua les Aconits sont veneneux, les raciiiea 

 s'emploient dans la pharmacie. 



Fig. 1. Aconit Napel Napel bleu. Corolle 

 rudimentaire , le calice bleu la remplace; le 

 sepale superieur a la forme d'un casque, sous 

 lequel sont caches deux petales, transformes 

 en nectaires. 



Plante veneneuse, abondant surtoute dans 

 les terrains riches en engrais, de 1000 a 2000m. 



Fig. 2. Aconit panicule. Tige rameuse 

 souvent flexueuse et munles de poils segmentes. 



Eboulis, clairieres de la forfit alpestre 

 1200 a 2400m. 



Fig. 3. Aconit Tue-loup, cappe de moine. 



Caracterise par ses fleurs jaunes et ses longues 

 casques; souvent on voit que les bourdons 

 prennent le miel par le haut en dechirant la 

 casque. 



Eboulis, humus, bosquets de la region 

 montagneuse jusqu'a 2400 m. 



Plate 6. 

 Monk's-hood. 



The Genus Aconitum (Monk's-hood) belongs 

 to the family of Ranunculacete and is charac- 

 terised by the following points: 



The leaves are palmate, the flowers have a 

 calyx which is developed like a corolla; in this 

 genus it has the function of attracting insects, 

 the real petals being partly transformed into 

 nectaries, partly abortive The uppermost, 

 which protects the nectaries has the shape of a 

 helmet (as expressed in the German name), the 

 4 others are much smaller. If one removes the 

 calyx, the two long-stalked nectaries are seen 

 below the helmet, one also sees the numerous 

 stamens and in the centre 3 separate styles. 



The monk's-hoods are dependent on the 

 humble-bees for the fertilization of their flowers 

 and therefore also for the formation of their 

 seeds. Where there are no bumble-bees, the 

 monk'shood cannot spread; the geographical 

 distribution of the monk's-hood is therefore 

 strictly limited by that of the humble-bees. 



All the monk's-hoods are poisonous. 



Fig. 1. Common Monk s-hood. The seg- 

 ments of the leaves are lineal, i. e. narrow, 

 with parallel margins, stem usually single and 

 straight, flower stem usually not branched. 



Poisonous weed in damp and rich-soil from 

 the mountain region upwards, especially in the 

 neighbourhood of the Alpine dairies and sheep- 

 folds, from 1UOO 2400 m. 



Fig. 2. Panicled Monk's-hood. Style branched 

 in its upper portion, bent in a zig-zag manner 

 and provided with jointed hairs. Flower stalks, 

 branched and not compact. 



Segments of the leaves long-lancetshaped 

 with a broadened base. Slopes of debris, 

 among alder bushes, more open spots in the 

 Alpine forests, 12002400 m. 



Fig. 3. Yellow Wolf's bane. Characterised 

 by its yellow flowers and long helmets. A piece 

 of the helmet is often bitten out by the 

 humble-bees in order to reach the honey, the 

 same thing often occurs also in the other species. 

 In bushy places, slopes of debris, sleeping 

 places of the cattle, from the mountain region 

 up to 2400 m. 



