SHORT NOTES. 127 



flower opens. The style is long and cylindrical and 

 covered entirely with white hairs. When the fully 

 developed bud is touched on the tip, the petals suddenly 

 spring open and lie quite flat in the form of a star. At the 

 same time the pollen lying loose in the bud is thrown 

 upon the other flowers already open. The mechanism by 

 which this sudden expansion of the flower takes place 

 seems to be very simple. The upper part of the petals 

 are twisted in bud, and on the side opposite to the direc ■ 

 tion in which the bent tip points a portion of the edge is 

 incurved so as to be tightly held by the next petal to it. 

 A light pressure, as of an insect, on the horizontal tips of 

 the petals by bending them down causes the petals to 

 separate and fly back suddenly, jerking the pollen out 

 over the other flowers, or possibly on the insect visitor. 

 On the top of the ovary is a brown sticky ring which may 

 perhaps secrete honey but I cannot detect any in the 

 tube. The flowers possessed a faint scent, and may be 

 fertilised by insects, but considering the inconspicuous- 

 ness of the green flowers, as compared with the sweet-scent- 

 ed white blossoms of the other Weberas and the fact that 

 it is quite easy for the pollen of one flower to be thrown 

 by the mere opening of the flower on to the stigma of the 

 adjacent one, it is more than probable that the plant itself 

 fertilises one flower by the pollen of another. 



Webera stellulata inhabits forests, usually in rather dry spots. 

 I have found it in Singapore at Woodlands flowering in 

 June, and Bukit Mandai, also in Johore, at Panchur ; 

 Selangor, Kuala Lumpor; Negri Sembilan, Gunong Angsi. 



The Malays call it Kahwa hutan and Kuruseh putih 

 and Pokoh Subiroh. It flowers from December to June. 



H. N. Ridley. 



R A. Soc, No. 41, 1904. 



