1922.] Bat-Flowers of the Mohwa. 573 
and the anthers open by pores to shed the powdery pollen, but in the 
pendulous flowers of the Mohwa the anthers open laterally in 
longitudinal slits to shed the pollen into the cavity formed by the 
unopened corollaand the pollen is shed through the minute pore-like 
openings of the corolla instead. The mechanism in the Mohwa 
somewhat resembles that of the common English Heath and 
also that of the Bruyére of the south of France in having pen 
dulous flowers with loose pollen mechanism, but in these the 
anthers open by pores. The Mohwa also resembles that of the 
heather (Calluna vulgaris) in the rapid growth of the flower in 
the second stage. Regarding this growth Miiller in his ‘ Fertil- 
isation of Flowers” states—‘‘ The style, which even in the bud 
overtops the stamens, grows very markedly after the flower 
opens as the flower itself does. As a rule, it attains its full 
length only after the anthers have completely shed their pollen, 
at which time the four-lobed stigma reaches its full develop- 
ment, but the stigma, even when the flower first opens, is cap- 
able of causing pollen-grains to adhere to it, and is not rarely 
found dusted with pollen at that period.” 
The floral mechanism of the Mohwa appears to be of a 
rather extraordinary type and is also quite perfected in its own 
line Perhaps it should be mentioned that two recent books on 
Indian Botany, ‘‘ A Manual of Elementary Botany for India ”’ 
by Achain, and Basu’s “Indian Medicinal Plants” have both 
given illustrations of the Mohwa flower ‘“‘ open’’, and have not 
mentioned in the text that the flower never opens. 
very accurate description, however, was given of the 
Mohwa tree as far back as 1785 by Hamilton in the first volume 
of “ Asiatic Researches.” In this he observes that “ the flowers 
are of a nature very extraordinary, differing essentially from 
those of any other plant with which I am acquainted, as they 
have not, in any respect the usual appearance of such but rather 
resemble berries, and I, like many others, had long conceived 
them to be the fruit of the Mahwah ; the tree drops its leaves 
in the month of February, and early in March these flowers 
egin to come out in clusters of thirty, forty or fifty, from the 
extremity of every small branchi; and from this period till the 
later end of April, as the flowers come to maturity (for they 
never open or expand ) they continue falling off, with their an- 
therae in the mornings, a little after sun-rise when they are 
gathered.” : ; 
The type of floral mechanism found in the Mohwa in 
which a large portion of the actual flower is edible is 4 rather 
costly and uncertain one (although it has been wonderfully per- 
fected in the Mohwa) and on this account appears to be very rare 
among plants. The only other plant with this type of mecha- 
nism, recorded so far, is Fraycinclea, a pandanus-like plant of 
Java, which is pollinated by bats while visiting the flowers for 
the edible bracts. a 
