550 ANGIOSPERMAE— DICOTYLEDON ES 



1269. V. officinalis L. — The small whitish or flesh-red, very fragrant flowers 

 of this species are rendered conspicuous by aggregation into large inflorescences. 

 Sprengel (' Entd. Geh.,' pp. 63-5) described them as protandrous, and this has been 

 confirmed by Ricca (Atti Soc. ital. sc. nat., Milano, xiv, 1871) and Herm. Miiller 

 (' Fertilisation,' pp. 306-7, ' Alpenblumen,' pp. 469-70). 



Five purple lines, which become paler in old flowers, serve as nectar-guides. 

 The corolla-tube is 4-5 mm. long, and about A mm. above its base there is 

 a pouch containing the nectary, while above this the inner surface of the tube is 

 beset with hairs. 



In the first stage of anthesis the pollen-covered anthers project from the 

 flower; in the second stage the 3 diverging stigmas also protrude. 



Insects visiting the younger flowers will therefore cover their feet and the 

 under-surface of their bodies with pollen, and transfer it to the stigmas of older 

 flowers. As the stamens are curved outwards in the second stage, automatic 

 self-pollination is prevented. 



According to Warnstorf (Verb. bot. Ver., Berlin, xxxviii, i8g6), the stamens do 



not project from the flower simulta- 

 "- " neously, but in succession, subse- 



quently curving outwards, so that 

 the extrorse anthers easily pollinate 

 neighbouring flowers in the female 

 stage. The pollen-grains are white 

 in colour, densely covered with spinose 

 tubercles, ellipsoidal, usually truncated 

 at one pole, up to 75 /i long and 

 44 yu. broad. 



Fig. .84. VaUriaim officinalis, L. (from i.aiure, rp, qnthnritv <;tntp<; that 



enlarged). A. Flower in the first (male) staRe : the ^ "^ ^^""^ aUlDOrity States tnai 



pollenK:overed anthers (a) are above the corolla, the by degeneration of the antherS pUrelv 



immature stigmas (a) are still curved to the side. B. J ^ ■ j i- ' 



Flower in the second (female) stage: the anthers (a) have female StOCKS are constituted, whlch 



shed their pollen, and are curved to the side, while the rprn(Tni7ahlp from a distanrp hv 



mature stigmas (s) project from the corolla, n, nectary. ^^^ reCOgniZaOlC irom a OlStanCe Dy 



their smaller and more crowded 

 flowers (Schr. natw. Yer., Wernigerode, xi, 1896). The species is therefore 

 gynodioecious. 



Visitors. — Herm. Miiller (H. M.) and Buddeberg (Budd.) give the following 

 list for Central Germany (Herm. Miiller, ' Fertilisation,' p. 307, ' Weit. Beob.,' Ill, 

 p. 98).- 



A. Coleoptera. Elateridae: i. Adrastus pallens F. Er., inactive (H. M.). 

 B. Diptera. (a) Conopidae : 2. Conops quadrifasciatus Deg., skg. (H. M.); 3. C. 

 scutellatus Mg., do. (H. M.); 4. Sicus ferrugineus Z., do. (H. M.). {i) Empidae: 

 5. Empis livida Z., in very large numbers, skg. (H. M.); 6. E. rustica Z., do. 

 (H. M.). (c) Muscidae: 7. Anthomyia sp., po-dvg. (Budd.) ; 8. Calliphora erythro- 

 cephala Mg., freq., skg. (H. M.) ; 9. C. vomitoria Z., do. (H. M.); 10. Echinomyia 

 fera Z., skg. (H. M.); 11. Lucilia cornicina F., freq., skg. (H. M.); 12. Musca 

 domestica Z., do. (H. M.) ; 13. Onesia floralis R.-D., do., (H. M.) ; 14. Sarcophaga 

 carnaria Z., do. (H. M.). {d) Syrphidae : 15. Chrysotoxum feslivum Z., skg. and 

 po-dvg. (H. M.); 16. Eristalis arbustorum Z., do. (H. M., Budd.); 17. E. horticola 

 Deg., do. (H. M.) ; 18. E. nemorum Z., do. (H. M.); 19. E. sepulcralis Z., do. 



