1 68 LORAN1UACEAE 



their side, the perianth-segments remaining connected at their apex. When 

 a bird inserts its beak through the slit in order to reach the nectar at the 

 base ot" the tube, the segments separate suddenly and coil back, throwing the 

 pollen of the attached stamens on the bird, thus securing the transport of 

 the pollen to other flowers. 



The fruits are large pseudoberries, with generally a red skin and a 

 comparatively large seed. The embryo is green and sometimes germinates 

 before the fruit is removed from the bush. 



Viscum. Mistletoe. Mi&teb Vogeleiit. 



This genus is quite cosmopolitan, occurring in America as well as in the 

 old world; but while there is only one species of mistletoe in Europe, viz. 

 the common Viscum album, there are 12 in South Africa. 



Viscum capense. This is the most widely spread species in South Africa, 

 easily recognised by its leafless twigs and white fruit. It occurs on many 

 kinds of shrubs and trees, particularly often however on species of R/ius and 

 Acacia. Another equally indifferent species, as far as the host is concerned, 

 is V, rotundifulium, with bright red pseudoberries which are often so 

 numerous that the whole plant appears to be covered with them. On the 

 other hand some species are quite partial with regard to their host, like the 

 curious V. minimum, which is known to occur only on Euphorbia polygona near 

 Port Elizabeth. Fig. B. 



The entire plant of V. minimum, as far as visible, is not much larger 

 than a pin's head, practically consisting merely of a minute thallus and two 

 buds, each 2 — 3 mm. long. When the fruit is fully grown it surpasses the 

 plant itself many times in size. 



Viscum capense is dioecious, but occasionally a specimen ot the one sex 

 has developed on one of the other sex, producing an apparently monoecious 

 plant; or two individuals of opposite sex may have started growing in close 

 proximity to each other and formed a natural graft. Similarly a Viscum 

 may be found growing on a Loranthus or the reverse may be seen, and 

 sometimes other parasites, like Cassytha or Cuscu/a, may attack either ot them 

 as they do many other plants. The embryo of Viscum is also green like that 

 of Loranthus, occasionally there are two or even three embryos in the same 

 fruit. (See Plate 38, C, 10.) 



Plate 39. 



A. The tree represented on this plate (Ai-zsphus mucfonata, Rliamnaceae, see Vol. 11) 

 had suffered so much from the numerous clumps bf mistletoe oil it that it was near dying. 



B. Loranthus Dregei. The section through parasite ami host shows the intimate 

 connection between the two and the cup-shaped outgrowth of the latter, obvioush caused 

 by the stimulus exerted by the former on its host. The huge holes in the wood of the 

 parasite are caused by a grub which had lived in it. 



According to Dr S. ScHoNLAND the same species causes the so-called " wood-flowers" 

 on Bur ken africana (Transvaal). 



