Chap VII. 



BLEEP OF LEAVES. 



353 



Fig. 144. 



Lotus (Ti-ibe 4).— The nyctitropic movements of 10 species 

 in this genus were observed, and found to be the same. The 

 main petiole rises a little at night, and 

 the three leaflets rise till they become 

 ■vertical, and at the same time approach 

 each other. This was conspicuous with 

 L. Jacohoeus, in which the leaflets are 

 almost linear. In most of the species 

 the leaflets rise so much as to press 

 against the stem, and not rarely they 

 become inclined a little inwards with 

 their lower surfaces exposed obliquely 

 to the zenith. This was clearly the 

 case with L. major, as its petioles are 



unusually long, and the leaflets are thus 

 enabled to bend further inwards. The 



young leaves on the sunmiits of the 



stems close up at night so much, as 



often to resemble large buds. The 



stipule-like leaflets, which are often of 



large size, rise up like the other leaflets, 



and press against the stem (Pig. 145). 



All the leaflets of L. Gehelii, and pro- 

 bably of the other species, are provided 



at their bases with distinct pulvini, of 



a yellowish colour, and formed of very 



small cells. The circumnutation of a 



terminal leaflet of L. perigrinus (with 



the stem secured) was traced during 



two days, but the movement was so 



simple that it is not worth while to 



give the diagram. The leaflet fell 



slowly from the early morning till 



about 1 P.M. It then rose gradually 



at first, but rapidly late in the evening. 



It occasionally stood still for about 20 m. during the day, and 



sometimes zigzagged a little. The movement of one of the 



basal, stipule-like leaflets was likewise traced in the s-ime 



manner and at the same time, and its course was closely similar 



to that of the terminal leaflet. 

 In Tribe 5 of Bentham and Hooker, the sleep-movements 



of species in 12 genera have been observed by ourselves and 



Trifolium repens : circum- 

 nutation and nyctitropic 

 movements of a nearly 

 full - grown terminal 

 leaflet, traced on a ver- 

 tical glass from 7 A.M, 

 Sept. 30th to 8 A.M. Oct. 

 1st. Nocturnal course, 

 represented by curved 

 broken line, much ab- 

 breviated. 



