90 
Bulletin Wisconsin Xatiiral History Society. [Vol. 5, No. 2. 
ing dates, indicating the blooming periods of these species as 
observed around ^Milwaukee : 
E. rubrum, April 24 — May 27. 
E. Cynosbati, May 2 — May 29. 
E. floriclum. ^lay 6— June 7. 
E. gracile, May 6— May 25. 
E. oxyacanthoides, ^lay 9 — June 16. 
According to these observations, all of the species have their 
flowers open together between ]\Iay 9 and 27. 
Ribes rubrum L. Eed currant. 
This plant is an inhabitant of damp woods, and is rapidly 
disappearing from the immediate surroundings of Milwaukee on 
account of the changed condition of most of the woods of our 
territory. It occurs also in Europe and Asia, and H. Mueller (4) 
has given an account of its pollination. The structure of the 
flower, as it occurs with us, does not quite agree with Mueller's 
description and the figure presented by Knuth (5). The 
flower of our region is purplish, has a diameter of about 
6 mm., and is rather flat, with entirely exposed nectar like R. 
alpinum (6), while the European one is more campanulate, with 
slightly concealed nectar. From this we must conclude that the 
flower of the Xorth American R. riihniin has remained nearer to 
the primitive type of the ancestral flower, while in Europe the 
flower has progressed in the direction of a campanulate flower. 
The same may be stated for the cultivated form, the red currant 
of our gardens. 
There are 20 or more flowers in a drooping raceme. The 
stamens, with their introrse anthers, and the style with the greenish 
2-parted stigma, are all of the same length, hardly reaching i mm. 
above the disc. The anthers and the stigma become mature at the 
same time (homogamy). Xectar appears as small drops on the 
(4) H. [Mueller. Die Befruchtung der Blumen durch Insekten. 
p. 95. 
(5) P. Knuth. Handb. d. Bluetenbiologie, Vol. II, part 1, p. 439. 
(6) H. Mueller. Loc. cit., p. 94. 
