42 ON PLANTS AND INSECTS. [lect. 



the cases of those flowers which, close early in the day, 

 the well-known Tragopogon pratense, or " John Go-to- 

 bed at Noon," for instance ; still more, such species as 

 Lapsana communis, or Crepis pulchra, which open before 

 six and close again before ten in the morning. Bees, how- 

 ever, are early risers, and some species, as for instance 

 some of the Halicti, cease visiting flowers before the heat 

 of the day commences, while ants come out later, when 

 the dew is off; so that it might be an advantage to a 

 flower which was quite unprotected, to open early for the 

 bees, and close again before the ants were out (see ante, 

 p. 36), thus preserving its honey exclusively for bees. 



So much for the first part of my subject. I must now 

 pass to the second — the action of plants upon insects. 

 It would here, perhaps, be most natural to discuss the 

 modifications which have been produced in insects by 

 the search after honey and pollen ; especially the gradual 

 lengthening of the proboscis in butterflies, moths, and 

 bees, to enable them to suck the honey, and the adapta- 

 tion of the legs of bees, to enable them to carry off the 

 more or less dry and dusty pollen. Having, however, 

 already said so much about flowers and insects, it will 

 be better for me to take other illustrations, and 

 fortunately there is no lack or difficulty. 



Many of the cases in which certain insects escape 

 danger by their similarity to plants are well known ; 

 the leaf insect and the walking-stick insect are familiar 

 and most remarkable cases. The larvae of insects afford, 

 also, many interesting examples, and, in other respects, 

 teach us, indeed, many instructive lessons. It would be 

 a great mistake to regard them as merely preparatory 

 stages in the development of the perfect insect. They are 



