1892. | Briefer Articles. ess 
spherical nucleus of 4 fuses with the nucleus of the egg cell 
of the archegonium. 
While it is hardly safe to generalize from such limited 
observations (for so far they have been confirmed only on 
Juniperus and that but partially) nevertheless the observa- 
tions accord much better with what we should expect from 
analogy with lower and higher plants. If these observations 
are confirmed by more extended study the pollen tube must 
be looked upon as the prothallium, while the small cells con- 
stitute the antheridium. The one which travels to the apex 
of the tube must be the mother cell of an antherozoid, to 
which the spherical nucleus would correspond. Perhaps on 
account of the imperfect division of 4’ it would have to be con- 
sidered as more primitive still, being the homologue of the 
cells from which the antherozoid mother-cells arise. —R. 
BRIEFER ARTICLES. 
Notes on pollination — I. The sandy hills, old trees and fences on 
the north shore of Long Island are covered with Ampelopsis guingue- 
folia Michx.. The numerous small, greenish-yellow flowers are quite 
conspicuous in contrast with their background of green leaves. On 
' the morning of July 22d, there were twenty-two flowers open on one 
cyme, the pollen-covered stamens outspread, the erect stigma occupy- 
"ing the flower center. Numerous visitors—honey bees, humble-bees, 
hornets, Sphecidz, other Hymenoptera small and large, and Diptera — 
were either sucking the nectar which is exposed in the base of the 
‘flower and accessible to the shortest tongues, or collecting or eating 
the pollen. Almost all of them touched both stamens and stigma be- 
fore leaving a flower. Early in the afternoon of the same day stamens 
and petals had fallen from all of these flowers but the visitors continued 
their visits as industriously as ever — of course, now only sucking 
nectar 
On the morning of July 23d, no more flowers had Soe and there 
were none with stamens on this whole plant or on any of the plants 
near by. The number of visitors was diminished. Early in the after- 
noon many new flowers had opened on all the plants and insects 
abounded. July 24th, at 8 a. M., after a heavy rain, very few stamens 
and petals remained. At 11 A.M. there were many newly opened 
flowers, July asth, 2 at 2 P. M., no stamens. 
