TKANSACTIONS OF SECTION D. DEPT. ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY. 677 



ever, are, for the Wiie, only 275 ; for the white, 349 ; yellow, 405 ; red, 413 ; green, 

 427 ; orange, 440 ; and plain glass as many as 491. 



A second mode of testing the result is to take the percentage in which the bees 

 went respectively to each colour, first, second, third, and so on The result is shown 

 in another table. The result was that out of a hundred rounds the bees took blue 

 as one of the first three in 74 cases, and one of the last four only in 26 cases ; 

 while, on the contrary, they selected the plain as one of the first three only in 25 

 cases, and one of the last four in 75 cases. 



On the whole, then, it seems clear that bees are affected by colour, and that 

 their favourite colour is blue. 



The author ended by some remarlcs on the compavative paucity of blue flowers, 

 and expressed tlie opinion that almost all, if not all, blue flowers had once been 

 yellow or white. 



2. Report of the Committee on the Zoological Station at Naples. — See 



Reports, p. 178. 



3. Report of the Committee on the Scottish Zoological Station. — See 



Reports, p. 177. 



4. On our present Knowledge of the Fauna inhahiting British India and its 

 Bependencies. By W. T. Blanford, F.R.S. 



The author called attention to the need for works on the geology, botany, and 

 zoology of British India and its dependencies, especially as regards the second and 

 third. These are needed, not only for students at home, but for purposes of instruc- 

 tion in the Indian Colleges ; for if the fauna of India is ever to be thoroughly known, 

 this result can only be obtained by enlisting the services of a large body of 

 observers ; and it is in every way desirable that many of these observers should be 

 natives of the country. But at present the difficulties in tlie way of nati^-es becom- 

 ing acquainted with the animals of India are almost insuperable, and the ignorance 

 that prevails is what might be expected. 



Judging from past experience, we may wait an indefinite period before the 

 necessary series of hand-books will be brought out by private enterprise unassisted 

 by Government support. 



Up to the present time, Excluding books relating only to Ceylon or to isolated 

 parts of the British possessions in India, only six works have been published that 

 can be considered useful text-books fur the determination of the Indian faima. 

 These books, with their size and date of publication, are the following : — 



Giinther's * Eeptiles of British India,' 1 vol. large 4to, 1864, 



Jerdon's 'Birds of India,' 3 vols, large 8vo, 1862-64. 



.Tei-don's ' Mammals of India,' 1 vol. large 8vo. 1867. 



Ilanley and Theobald's ' Conchologia Indica ' (plates of land and freshwater 

 shells only), I vol. 4to, 1870-76. 



Theobald's 'Reptiles of British India,' 1 vol. large 8vo, 1876. 



Day's ' Fishes of India,' 1 vol. text, 1 vol. plates, 4to, 1875-78. 



With the exception of the last-named, all of these works are now inadequate, 

 <?ither on account of the large additions that have been made to the subjects since 

 they were published, or from original want of completeness. 



The most successful and, in many respects, the best of the text-books named is 

 Jerdon's ' Birds of India ; ' and it is not too much to say that since the appearance 

 of that work, and, to a very great extent, in consequence of its publication, the 

 knowledge of the subject has been quadrupled, and the number of observers and 

 students has increased in even a larger proportion. 



From experience it appears that the books most required are works very similar 



