88 PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. V, January, 1951 
Fig. 6. Peculiar stamens and combinations of reduced stamens and petals in flowers of Cassia fistula: tree 
B (A-G), tree H (H-J). A, Reduced anther in five-petaled flower with eight stamens and four sepals. B, Stamen 
No. 1 imitating missing No. 9 but smaller. C, Stamen No. 1 on petal (see Fig. 5, C). D, Stamen No. 3 on petal c 
(Nos. 7, 8, 9, and petal b missing). E, Stamen No. 7 on petal e (Nos. 1 and 9 missing, one of five petals, e, re- 
duced). F, Stamen No. 1 on petal b (Nos. 9, 10, and petal e missing). G, Double stamen, Nos. 3 and 4 (Nos. 7, 
8, and petal d missing). H, I,J, Three views of a double stamen. Nos. 1 and 10. 
mens is confirmed by observations of plant 
anatomists, as by Eames (1931: 170), who, in 
figures of flowers, shows that vascular bun- 
dles of sepals, petals, and stamens may be 
united within the flower but that the bundles 
of the sepals may branch ofiF much farther 
down than do those of the petals and stamens. 
Other instances of stamens being borne on 
petals or functioning as petals are sometimes 
found, as in double roses, double hibiscus, 
peonies, and water lilies. Many flowers hav- 
ing both calyx and corolla, as the mints and 
verbenas, bear stamens on the corolla tubes. 
In representatives of the ginger, canna, and 
maranta families, most of the stamens are 
sterile, conspicuous, and petal-like. 
Among the 26 trees of C. fistula examined, 
two other oddities were found. On two trees, 
H and I, both near Bishop Museum, two 
aberrant forms of flowers were found. From 
tree I, five flowers were taken, four of which 
were of the common five-parted form. The 
other had the same arrangement, but six 
petals, six sepals, and 12 stamens (one extra 
of each of No. 5 and 6 forms). From tree H, 
nine flowers were taken. One flower was five- 
parted but aberrant in having stamens Nos. 4, 
10, 6, and 8 not paired but of different 
lengths. No. 4 being the shortest. No. 10 a 
little longer. No. 6 longer, and No. 8 longest. 
Seven flowers were five- parted except that 
they had only nine stamens, the missing sta- 
men being No. 4 or No. 10. With No. 4 miss- 
ing, the base of petal c came to a point be- 
tween stamens Nos. 3 and 5, which therefore 
stood close together. The ninth flower was 
five-parted throughout, but stamens Nos. 10 
and 1 were joined, having a double filament 
and the anther of No. 1 standing just above 
the anther of No. 10 (Fig. 6, H-J). Some other 
flowers of tree H were examined and found to 
be the common five-parted form. 
