422 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



ON THE SUPPOSED SELECTIVE ACTION OF BEES 



ON FLOWERS. 



By G. W. Bulman, M.A., B. Sc. 



The following illustrations of the bee's taste with regard to 

 flowers, from my own experience, tend to show that these insects 

 do not exhibit, as has been supposed, that decided partiality for 

 blue, nor that nice discrimination of form necessary to enable 

 them to develop a race of blue flowers specially adapted to them 

 in shape by their selective action. On a patch of mingled blue 

 and white Canterbury bells I noted to which colour the bees 

 went first as follows : — 



(1). A humble bee went first to a faded white flower, then to 

 other white ones. After thus spending a long time on a few 

 flowers, it went to blue, and then returned to white. A single 

 blue flower was then visited, and it came back to white. 



(2). A hive bee visited several white flowers ; went off without 

 going to blue. 



(3). A humble bee visited several white flowers, and flew off 

 to another patch of white, without going to blue. 



(4). A humble bee visited two white flowers, and then flew off. 



(5). A hive bee ; white. 



(6). A hive bee ; white. 



(7). A humble bee ; white. 



(8). A hive bee; white, then one blue flower, and back to 

 white. 



(9). A small wild bee; three or four blue flowers, then white. 



(10). A humble bee ; three blue flowers, and then flew off. 



(11). A hive bee; white, and flew off to adjacent patch of 

 white. 



(12). A hive bee; five white flowers, and off to adjacent 

 patch of white. 



(13). A hive bee ; four or five blue, then white. 



Thus in 13 instances 10 bees, on coming to the mingled blue 

 and white flowers, went first to the white, and only 3 went first 

 to the blue. Of the latter one restricted itself to blue, and of the 

 former a few confined themselves to white, that is to say, so far 

 as my observation of them extended. Many of them passed 

 from blue to white, and from white to blue. From this I infer 

 that these bees do not prefer blue flowers. 



