INSECTS IIT THETB VISITS TO TLOWEES. 183 



quently traversing considerable distances in order not to mix its 

 pollen. In two cases (Nos. 31 and 44) the pollen attached to the 

 hind legs was examined, and found to he of one kind only, corre- 

 sponding to that of the flower on which it was captured. It was 

 quite obvious that at the same spot different Bees of the same 

 species were visiting different flowers. Obs. no. QG is particu- 

 larly interesting as showing that the insect, however, is not 

 attracted by colour only. At a spot where there were both 

 white and pink foxgloves, a large Humble-Bee was watched to pay 

 16 successive visits to the flowers of this plant, indifferently white 

 and purple, passing over in its flights many other kinds of flowers 

 and flying considerable distances. 



A single observation (No. 61) was made on an unknown spe- 

 cies of Wood-Bee. It was visiting one species only (Fotentilla 

 TormentiUd) on a woody knoll, where there was a large number 

 of others ; the niimber of separate visits was not counted, but 

 was very large. The pollen on the legs appeared to be of this 

 one kind only. 



The common Hive-Bee (Apis mellijica) was observed six times 

 (Nos. 14, 19, 27j 28, 45, 56). On one of these occasions only 

 (No, 14) did it visit two different flowers while kept in sight, paying 

 one visit to the blue Scahiosa succisa, and then nine in succession 

 to the pink Centaurea Scahiosa ; in all the others it was abso- 

 lutely constant to one flower. In four of these instances the 

 flower visited was pink or some shade of red, viz., Gentaurea 

 nigra 4 visits, the apple 5, Serratula tinctoria24!, and tlie bramble 

 a large number, but not counted. Obs. No. 45 is very interesting. 

 The Bee paid 24 consecutive visits to Serratula tinctoria, ob- 

 viously rejecting Gentaurea nigra, which is not unlike it in general 

 appearance and nearly the same colour. This individual was cap- 

 tured and the pollen on its legs examined, when it proved to con- 

 sist entirely, or nearly so, of that of the Serratula, which is of a 

 very characteristic form, and very different from that of the Gen- 

 taurea. In the remaining instance (No. 27) the flower visited 

 was yellow, viz. the Dandelion ; the number of visits was not 

 counted, but was very large. 



In accordance with a plan suggested by my friend Mr, Eobert 

 Miller Christy, who has been pursuing the same line of observa- 

 tion in greater detail than I am able to do, and with great success 

 I append a Table indicating the number of visits paid while the 

 insect was kept under observation in the sixty-six different cases 



