74 JOURNAL OF SCIENCE. 



Waiu river, Southland. He visited the caves in November last, with 

 two companions. He says : — " Having visited the cave, we were 

 returning and were within a few chains of the mouth wben one of us 

 noticed a light at the end of one of the numerous alleys running off 

 from the main cave. Thinking it was an outlet from the cave I went 

 towards it, but as I drew nearer, the light became smaller changing 

 from a pale yellow to blue, till when I had got right up to it, it 

 appeared as a small but brilliant blue spot and I saw that it proceeded 

 from a worm which seemed to be fixed to the wall by a few silken 

 threads. Near it was a second worm, but I do not remember whether 

 it emitted a light or not. The worms were about one inch long, flesh- 

 coloured, and light apparently came from near the head. They seemed 

 to have the power of putting out the light at will, for after I had 

 regained my companions no light could be seen. The change in the 

 colour of the lighted may have been due to my approaching it with a 

 lighted candle. 



Humble-Bees. — Mr. L. Cockayne of Dilcoosha, Styx, near Christ- 

 church, who is well known as a collector of Alpine plants, and a 

 cultivator and introducer of European Alpines, sends the following 

 notes of plants visited by humble-bees, in addition to those mentioned 

 in Mr. Thomson's paper, p. 16 : — 



Ranunculace^e. 



Aquilegia chrysantlm. 

 Nigella damascena. 



PAPAVE RACEME. 



Papaver alpinum. On the red-flowered, but never on the 

 white variety. 

 Bartonia aurea. 

 Argemone mexicana. 

 Bocconia cordata. 



Geraniace^e. 



Erodium manescavi. 

 Geranium pratense. 



Rosaceje. 



Spircea, two shrubby species. 



Hi/bus idceusjl. pi. One of the few white-flowered plants on 



which humble-bees have been observed. 



Composite. 



Centaur ea oMstriaca. 

 Dahlia Juarezi, and its varieties. 



Helianthus multiflorus. The flowers of this species of Sun- 

 flower intoxicate the bees. 



SOLANEyE. 



Mcotiana affinis — another of the white flowers visited. 



SCROPHULARINEvE. 



Linaria anticaria. 

 Linaria macedonica. 



