356 
NOTES. 
NOTES. 
The Brazii»nut Tree in Ceylon. — When the notes published 
in Ann. Perad., V., pp. 421-431, were written, no fruits of the 
Brazil-nut tree at Henaratgoda were available. In 1915 this 
tree produced a single fruit, which ripened in 1916. The 
fruit was of the same type as those of the Peradeniya tree ; 
the diameter of the operculum exceeded that of the opercular 
orifice, and consequently the operculum was retained within 
the ripe fruit. If this fruit character is considered of specific 
value, both the Ceylon trees must be referred to Bertholletia 
nobilis.—H. Petch. 
The Pollination of the Bombax. — When the Bombax 
(B. malabaricum DC.) is in flower, even the casual observer 
cannot fail to notice the riotous congregations of crows which 
frequent the trees. One current explanation is that they feed 
on the flowers, but it can be clearly seen, with the aid of a 
field glass, that they are drinking from them. The fallen 
flowers do not bear any signs of having been bitten. The 
flowers, which stand, as a rule, more or less erect upon the 
branches, contain a comparatively large quantity of a bluish, 
somewhat opalescent liquid, and there seems no doubt that 
it is this which attracts the birds. They push their beaks 
down the middle of the flower, and, after withdrawal, perform 
the usual actions of drinking. To humans the liquid seems to 
lack any particular taste, but the more than ordinary talkative- 
ness of the crows suggests interesting possibilities. It would 
appear probable that these birds are the chief agents in 
conveying pollen from one flower to another. Other smaller 
birds visit the flowers, but it is doubtful whether these could 
reach the nectar from the top of the flower ; and as the style 
overtops the long clusters of stamens, it would not be touched 
by birds which inserted their beaks at the side. The crow 
which frequents the Bombax at Peradeniya is Corone macro- 
rhyncha. — T. Petch. 
H. C. COTTLE, GOVERNMENT PRINTER, COLOMBO, CEYLON. 
