Natural History Notes. 
BY WILLIAM YATES, HATCHLEY. 
November 28, 1910 :—Another infrequent phenomenon 
was observed by the writer in the month of August some 
years ago. Whilst engaged working in the woods one 
warm cloudy afternoon, the strange motion of a frond of 
the sensitive fern (Ongclea sensibilis) attracted my atten- 
tion. The stalk or stem, and large triangular frond, 
swayed to and fro over two-thirds of a circle, like 
the fingers on a clock face, moving backwards, as if 
from the figure four to about twenty minutes to the 
noon mark on the opposite side. This movement 
kept on for a minute or two, and seemed spontaneous. 
The locality was a small cleared space, about twenty-five 
feet in diameter, and scarcely the vestige of a breeze 
existed near. After a pause of a minute or two, the semi- 
circular movement was repeated, and the fact caused 
wonder and puzzling conjecture in the mind of the observer. 
Had similar movements been observed to be a habit of the 
plant and caused the specific name of ‘‘sensibilis,’’ to be 
attached to the generic name Onoclea? In the instance 
here referred to the plant was isolated and apart from other 
vegetation, and the idea suggested itself that the leaf lobes 
might have been arranged on the stalk similar to the vanes 
on a ventilator, or after the manner of the sails of a wind- 
mill. ‘The species is a common one, and the individual 
plant thus observed in spontaneous motion grew on drier 
ground than the localities where O. semszdilis is usually 
met with. 
A few notes on the wild elderberry shrub Sambucus 
Canadensis (purple berried), and Sambucus prebens (red 
berried elder) : 
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