affecting the Peas and Beans. 
413 
(lividuals of the same species vary greatly in size, not being able 
to creep into many flowers that are too small to admit of their 
bodies, and too long to allow of their reaching the nectary with 
their tongues: they are not, however, to be thus baulked of their 
feast, and instinct directs them to the exact spot on the calyx 
beneath which the nectar is stored (pi. R, fig. 17, k) : there they 
nibble with their strong jaws (fig. 19, /) until they are enabled to 
introduce their proboscis (figs. 18 and 19) and obtain the desired 
treasure. It is surprising, too, that in flowers of a peculiar 
structure the bees make two holes, to extract the nectar on both 
sides of the germen. as noticed by Mr. C. Darwin,* who con- 
siders the holes are made simply to save trouble. The extent of 
their operations may be imagined by bis statement, that in the 
Zoological Gardens, in August, 1841, " All the flowers of Salvia 
Grahami and the Antirrhinum, which I looked at in different 
parts of the garden, were bored ; and out of the many hundreds 
in bloom in the two large beds of Stachys and Penstemon, I could 
not find one without its little orifice, nor did I see one bee crawl 
in at the mouth." 
We must not farther indulge in these garden-walks, but return 
to the crops. On the 23rd of May, 1841, Mr. Gordon, who has 
the charge of one of the departments in the Horticultural Garden 
at Chiswick, called my attention to this subject. The broad- 
beans were full in flower, and he pointed out to me the blossoms 
which had been perforated by bees. The Orifice ffig. 17, k) was 
invariably on the upper side of the calyx and near the centre, or a 
little more towards the base ; the incision passed through the 
calyx, as well as the upper lobe of the flower, into the nectary con- 
taining the honey, which proved a great detriment to the crop, 
for the punctured flowers cannot perfect all the beans in the seed- 
vessel, or the pod proves altogether abortive ; and out of clusters 
of from o to 8 flowers only one or two had escaped the injury. 
On a subsequent visit I found many pods with a rough brown 
wound near the base, or they were distorted and deficient of 
beans, having only two or three at a distance from the puncture, j 
In the same year the horse-beans were in some places attacked to 
a great extent, and I was amused in the middle of June at wit- 
nessing the investigations to which a female Humble-bee (^Bombus 
lucorum) subjected the flowers, flying from one bean to another, 
at last alighting with its head over the calyx, just putting its nose 
to the artificial aperture, and bustling off in a moment to others. 
From this movement I am led to presume that the sound flowers 
it left unnibbled were too far advanced, or from some other cause 
* Mr. W. Charlton, in the Gardener's Chron., vol. i. p. 550. 
t Gardener's Chron.. vol. i. p. 485. 
2 F 2 
