DEGENERA TION. 



103 



resemble, on a smaller scale, those of the nettle; 

 and the stamens here, again, are opposite to the 

 calyx-lobes, which of course implies the suppression 



FIG. 36. Male flower of nettle (Urtica dioica); green, with stamens opposite 

 the sepals. 



of a corolla. In the beech (Betuld) the three florets 

 under each bract are loosely and irregularly arranged ; 

 and in the male hornbeam (Carpinus) and hazel (Cory- 

 /us) the perianth is wholly obsolete. All these are 



FIG. 37. Flowers of alder (A Inns); jrreen, with stamens opposite the sepals. 



probably quite anemophilous. The willows (Salix), 

 on the other hand, though included by Sir John 

 Lubbock in the same category (doubtless through 



