16 DROSERA ROTUNDIFOLIA. Cuap. L 
sould then be blown away by a breath of air; the 
leaves being thus left unencumbered and free for future 
action. Nevertheless, it often happens that all the 
glands do not become completely dry; and in this 
ease delicate objects, such as fragile insects, are some- 
times torn by the re-expansion of the tentacles into 
fragments, which remain scattered all over the leaf. 
After the re-expansion is complete, the glands quickly 
begin to re-secrete, and as soon as fuli-sized drops 
are formed, the tentacles are ready to clasp a new 
object. 
When an insect alights on the central disc, it is 
instantly entangled by the viscid secretion, and the 
surrounding tentacles after a time begin to bend, and 
ultimately clasp it on all sides. Insects are generally 
killed, according to Dr. Nitschke, in about a quarter 
of an hour, owing to their trachee being closed by 
the secretion. If an insect adheres to only a few of 
the glands of the exterior tentacles, these soon 
become inflected and carry their prey to the tentacles 
next succeeding them inwards; these then bend in- 
wards, and so onwards, until the insect is ultimately 
carried by a curious sort of rolling movement to the 
centre of the leaf. Then, after an interval, the ten- 
tacles on all sides become inflected and bathe their 
prey with their secretion, in the same manner as 
if the insect had first alighted on the central disc. It 
is surprising how minute an insect suffices to cause 
this action: for instance, I have seen one of the 
smallest species of gnats (Culex), which had just 
settled with its excessively delicate feet on the 
glands of the outermost tentacles, and these were 
already beginning to curve inwards, though not a 
single gland had as yet touched the body of the 
insect. Had I not interfered, this minute gnat would 
