THE COLOR SENSE OF THE HONEY-BEE : IS 

 CONSPICUOUSNESS AN ADVANTAGE TO 

 FLOWERS? 



JOHN H. LOVELL 



In 1895, Professor Felix Plateau, of the University of 

 Ghent, began the publication of a long series of papers, 

 in which he asserted that Hermann Miiller, in formula- 

 ting his theory of the evolution and use of floral colors, 

 had been misled by a too vivid imagination ; and that an- 

 thophilous insects are attracted chiefly by odor. In a list 

 of his papers prepared by himself and now before me 

 Plateau states that his latest contribution, entitled Les 

 insects et la couleur des fleurs, 1 contains a 44 summary of 

 the whole." The conclusions of many years of patient 

 research are given at the close of this paper as follows : 



"In the relations between the insect fertilizers and entomophilous 

 flowers, the more or less bright coloration of the floral organs has not 

 the preponderating role which Sprengel, H. Miiller and their numerous 

 adherents have attributed to them. All the flowers in nature might 

 be as green as the leaves without their fertilization being compromised. 

 The sense of smell so well developed among most insects far from being 

 a secondary factor is probably the principal sense which discovers to 

 them the flowers containing pollen and nectar." 



By fertilization Plateau doubtless means pollination, 

 for fertilization is an entirely distinct phenomenon, often 

 not occurring until many months after the pollen has been 

 placed upon the stigma. Plateau's conclusions have not 

 met with general acceptance; and in some instances, as 

 he himself naively remarks, have been criticized in a 

 ' 1 merciless manner." 



Floroecology is, however, greatly indebted to him not 

 only for many very interesting observations and experi- 



1 Plateau, F. Les insects et la couleur des fleurs. L'Annee Psy- 



chologique, 13, 67-79, 1907. 



338 



