FRUITS AND SEEDS 135 



XXIII.— FRUITS AND SEEDS.— Part II. 



How Seeds are spread by Animals. 



1. And now we have to see how seeds are spread 

 by animals. 



2. How juicy, coloured fruits are spread. Just 

 as flowers put forth gay petals to draw the bees, 

 so many fruits become sweet and coloured to draw the 

 birds or other animals. We have seen that many 

 plants have insect friends that come to their flowers. 

 In the same way many plants have bird or animal 

 friends that come when the seeds are ripe. It is to 

 let these friends know when the seed is ripe that the 

 fruit becomes red or yellow, black or white. And it is 

 to pay them for carrying away the seeds that the 

 fruits are juicy and sweet. In Australia it is not easy 

 to understand all about these friendships between 

 plant and bird and beast, because most of our fruit- 

 trees are from abroad. 



3. Some of our native birds have learned to eat the 

 fruits of trees that have been brought into Australia. 

 The little silver-eye is just as fond of mulberries as of 

 any native fruit ; and the 'keets often come to the 

 orchard in swarms when the plums are ripe. The 

 prickly-pear is not a native plant, but our birds have 

 become fond of its yellow fruit, and have scattered the 

 seed so that the plant has overrun and spoiled many 

 rich pieces of land. 



4. Colours of fruits and flowers compared. 



Have you ever noticed that fruits often he.ve colours 



