the flower seems quite adaptated for pollination by bees or moths. These 

 are in the first place the long peduncled species, H. elongate/, H. mollis, 

 where the flower is „ringent". Here the anther is more or less ascendent 

 during the anthesis, leaving some room between itself and the lip, allowing 

 entrance to the head of a visiting insect of moderate size; the large obtri- 

 gonous stigma with its large transversally elliptic mouth, is projecting some 

 mm. above the anther. The projecting coloured lip represents an exquisite 

 point of support for the visitor and the wide, converging petals are as wel' 

 a means of show as a protection. There is an abundance of pollen deposited 

 on the surface of thecae and lip and by repeatedly introducing and retiring 

 a pencil-point into a recently opened flower one is almost certain to deposit 

 some pollen upon the edges of the stigma- mouth. 



There must however be observed that the stigma is not provided with 

 either lips or cilia 's and that there apparently is in the whole adaptation no 

 predilection for autopollination or crossing. 



Quite as perfect an adaptation for insect-pollination is found in H. al- 

 liacea, with its beautifully coloured far extending lip. Here however the spikes, 

 freely exposed to the air on their long stalks in the two former species, are 

 thronged around the rhizome, their lower part often being buried in the earth 



Here also germinating pollentubes are commonly found on the stigma. 



In the species of the Scyphifcra group at the beginning of the anthesis 

 the anther is appressed to the lip, with the thecae down, and the rigid 

 stamen, more or less conform in its shape to the concave lip, forms a 

 quite fitting cover over it. At full anthesis the top of the cover is lifted 

 a little and it is quite possible for any strong insect to force its head or 

 body between stamen and lip. Of flying insects only large moths could 

 come into consideration, with a proboscis 70 mm. tall which alone could 

 reach the nectar. In H. Pininga and H. palndosa I did not find pollen 

 lumps on the mouth of the stigma, while its hairy surface was densely 

 covered by pollen; while passing the anther the clothing hairs collected 

 the pollen, but the mouth of the stigma was shut off by the long cilia 's- 



Only in H. villosa, where the cilia 's are much shorter, I always found 

 the pollen lumbs on the stigma, and this species seems to be excellently 

 adapted for auto-fecundation. 



Conspectus specierum. 



I. Subgenus Scyphifera (Donacodes BL.) Rhizomata subterranea vel 

 radicibus longis supraterraneis elevata. Inflorescentia breviter scaposa- 

 Bracteae involucrantes reticulatae vel sericeae. Bracteae florales involucro 

 inclusae. Bracteola + carinata compressa dorso filiformi-mucronata, in H. 

 tomentosa deficiens. Calyx tubo corollae brevior compressus bicarinatus 

 bilobus utrinque mucronatus. Petala rigida dorsale antheram fovens, an- 

 teriora vulgo basi connata labellum suffulcientia, Labellum linguiforme 

 subrigidum, auriculis magnis supra dorsum antherae inflexis et appressis. 

 Antherae thecae connectivo rigido apice producto et rotundato adnatae 



