INDEX

[Illustration]

Agalena, house-spider, 7.

Alypia, grape-vine-moth, 160.

Andromeda (_A. ligustrina_),

singular greeting to the bee, 126;

interior arrangement of flower, 128;

release of the pollen, 129.

Angræcum, orchid of Madagascar, with nectary eleven inches long, 219.

Ants,

herding the aphides, 166;

a model honey-farm, 167.

"Ant-holes," 61.

Aphides, plant-lice,

founders of the feast, 165;

herded by ants, 167.

_Apocynum_, dogbane, 236.

_Aprophora_, spume-bearer, 82.

_Arethusa bulbosa_, orchid, 175.

_Argiope_, field spider, 8.

Aristolochias, 119.

Aristotle, 23.

Arum, wild:

--Position of the anthers, 141;

progressive stages of change, 142.

_Asclepias cornuta_, milkweed, 227.

_Asilus_, "robber-fly", 8.

Axell, a follower of Darwin, 116.

Bees:

--The drone of, 5;

a counterpart of clover; dependence of clover on, 117;

manner of approach, 121;

black-and-white banded, 126;

approach to the blue-flag, 131;

experiment with the bumblebee, 209;

his escape from the flower, 210;

manner of cross-fertilizing, 212;

manner of conveying the pollen, 218;

his difficulties with the milkweed flower, 233;

the cumbersome handicap, 234;

destroyed by the milkweed, 235.

Beetles (_Cicindela_), tiger, 68.

Birds:

--Swifts, 5;

robin, 5;

vireo, 5, 45;

indigo, 5;

chat, 5, 40;

oriole, 5, 32;

red-headed chippy; barn-swallow, 6, 28, 39, 40;

cuckoo, 23;

"kow-bird"; cow black-bird; bunting, 27;

song-sparrow, 30, 40;

Maryland yellow-throat, 28, 45;

Wilson's thrush; chewink, 32;

fly-catcher; bluebird; oven-bird; cat-bird; phoebe, 40;

bobolink; "reed-bird," 53;

humming, 227.

Birds' nests:

--Flimsy structure of the cuckoo's, 26;

song-sparrow's, 30;

oriole's swinging hammock; cobweb structure of the vireo's, 32;

size of yellow-bird's; summer yellow-bird's beautiful home, 47;

a four-story house, a possible fashion in featherdom, 51;

pipit's, 35;

wood-sparrow's, 37.

Bittersweet (_Celastrus scandens_), queer little harlequins on, 9;

its scarlet-coated seeds, 88.

Blackburn, Mrs., quoted, 35.

Blair, Patrick, his claims concerning pollen, 111.

Blossom ceremonies, 119.

Blue-flag,

its hidden anthers reached only by the bumblebee or large fly,129;

manner of the bee's approach, 131.

Burroughs on wren-building, 17.

Butterflies:

--Great yellow swallow-tail (_Papilio turnus_); red admiral

(_Pyrameis Atlanta_); small yellow (_Philodice_); semicolon

(_Grapta interrogationis_); comma (_Vanessa comma_), 153;

orange; white (_Aphrodite_), 154;

white cabbage (_Pontia oleracea_) 153.

_Cactus_, prickly-pear, its golden bower, 118.

_Collinsonia_, horse-balm, 136.

Caterpillars, 10, 14, 15, 62.

_Celastrus scandens_, bittersweet, 88.

_Chamælirium luteum_, devil's-bit, 133.

Chipmonk, 6.

Cicada,

victim of the sand-hornet, 77;

manner of depositing its eggs; period of transformation, 97;

time of hatching, 100.

Cicindela, tiger-beetle, 68.

Clover, cause of failure of crop in Australia, 117.

Cobwebs:

--A dusty prize; a two year's span, 7;

a mixed assortment in, 8.

Cone-flower (_Rudbeckia hirta_), 138;

embryo seeds; arrangement of the anthers, 139.

Cow black-bird, 27;

his favorite perch; old dame's theory, 28;

an unwelcome intruder, 30;

a prowling foe, 31.

Cow-bird:

--Ravenous young parasite, 31;

a clamoring lubber, 37;

"Black Douglas" of the bird-home, 38;

selected victims, 39;

distribution of its eggs; vicious habits, 40;

egg-laying intervals; demoralizing conditions; American species

an improvement, 41;

survival of the fittest, 42;

balance of power, 44;

outwitted, 51;

massing for migration, 52.

"Cow-spit," 80.

Cross-fertilization, 115, 122, 178, 189, 194.

"Cuckoo-spit," 80.

Cuckoos:

--Poetic misnomer, 23;

outrage on maternal affection; yellow-billed; black-billed;

imagination versus facts, 25;

bad workmanship of nest, 26;

its stammering cry, 27;

manner of depositing its eggs; handling the egg with her bill, 33;

short period of incubation; voracious appetite of the young;

aggressive selfishness, 34;

the tragedy of the nest, 35;

manner of disposing of its nest-mates, 36.

_Cypripedium acaule_, moccasin-flower; ladies'-slipper;

Venus's-slipper, 205.

Darwin:

--Process of anatomical evolution, 35;

theory of cross-fertilization, 105;

inspired insight, 115;

his disciples, 116;

experiments with pollen, 126;

weakness of self-fertilizing flowers, 144;

triumphant revelation, 171;

reaffirming Sprengel's theory, 178;

a chosen interpreter, 181;

dependence on insects, 183;

revealing the hidden treasure, 185;

foretelling the manner of cross-fertilization, 189;

description of the cross-fertilization, 209;

bees as implied fertilizers, 212;

truth of his belief, 220.

Darning-needle, dragon-fly (_Libellulidæ_), 156;

his dainty morsel, 160.

Delpino, a follower of Darwin, 116.

_Desmodium_, its hospitable welcome, 118.

Devil's-bit (_Chamælirium luteum_), 133.

Digger wasp,

its color and wire-like waist, 72;

manner of working, 74;

covering its tracks; opening the tomb, 76;

living food for the young grub, 77;

its remarkable carrying power, 78.

Dogbane (Apocynum),

its fragrant, bell-shaped flowers, 236;

trapping moths, 237.

Dogwood, 5.

Door-Step Neighbors:

--Chronicle of a day, 58;

disappearing holes, 59, 16;

"ant-holes"; a danger signal; an unhealthy court, 61;

a transformation, 62;

an experiment; method of excavation, 63;

a stalwart worker, 64;

an uncouth nondescript; spider-like legs, 66;

crawls on his back, 67;

a tiny black wasp; a spider-catcher, 69;

resting on her wings; inspecting her burrow, 70;

manner of burying her prey; skilful workmanship, 71;

a new-comer; her wire-like waist; digging her tunnel, 72;

manner of working; sound of labor, 74;

covering her tracks; opening the tomb, 76;

fresh living food, 77;

carrying seven times its weight; peculiar features of stone-piling, 78;

color of the wasp, 79;

the spume-bearer, 81;

nomadic blossoms; a sack bearer, 83;

winter quarters, 84.

Epeira, field spider, 8.

Epiphytes, air-plants, 181.

Evening primrose, its golden necklace, 118.

"Fertilization of Flowers," 116;

wrong theory, 114.

Fertilization of orchids, 105, 183.

Flies:

--Robber, 8;

bluebottle, 8;

harvest ichneumon, 45, 77, 96.

Foxes, wild gambols of, 6.

Froghopper. See Spume-bearer (_Aprophora_), 82.

Gärtner, recognizing the theory of cross-fertilization, 115.

Genesta, its reception of insects, 118.

Geranium, wild (_G. sylvaticum_), 112.

Gilbert, concerning cuckoo's eggs, 25.

"Gobs," 80.

Gray, Asa:

--Demonstration concerning orchids, 184;

surmise concerning the withdrawal of pollen, 188;

orchid structure, 190.

Grew, Nehemias, discovery concerning pollen, 110;

discoveries about pollen, 113;

first step in progress, 116.

Habenaria flava:

--Yellow-spiked, 203;

_H. lacera_, ragged, 200;

_H. orbicularis_, showy, 194, 199;

_H. psycodes_, purple-fringed, 200;

_H. mascula_, 189.

Heath, its distinguishing characteristics, 123.

_Hemiptera_, bugs with sucking beaks, 81.

Herbert:

--A follower of Sprengel, 108;

recognizing the principle of cross-fertilization, 115.

"Honey-dew Picnic":

--Gathering of the clans, 153;

a selected spot, 154;

a motley assemblage, 155;

an outlaw, 157;

a finish fight, 158;

funeral baked meats, 164;

gathering his grist;

the founder of the feast, 158.

Honey-guides, 112, 129.

Hornets:

--Its heavy load, 9;

on the watch, 15;

"solitary," 17;

queer home of, 18;

great sand, 77;

black paper, 161.

Horse-balm (_Collinsonia_), its singular shape, 136;

manner of bee's approach to, 138.

Huber:

--On insect slavery, 151;

on the cultivation of the aphides, 166.

Insect Fertilization, 115.

Jack-in-the-Pulpit, detaining its guests, 119.

Jardine, Sir William, concerning cuckoo's eggs, 32.

Jenner, Dr., habits of the young cuckoo, 35.

Knight, Andrew:

--On the divination of flowers, 108;

theory of cross-fertilization, 115.

Köhlreuter:

--Recognizing Sprengel's principles, 108;

a botanical pioneer, 115.

Krunitz, on flower honey, 111.

Labiates, flowers with lips, 122.

Ladies'-tresses (_Spiranthes_), 218.

Larva:

--Hornet, 16;

"puss-moth," 76;

psychid, 83.

Linnæus:

--Settling the theory of fertilization, 110;

puzzled as to the function of honey, 111;

a second step, 116;

imperfect knowledge of the orchid, 173.

Logan, concerning the cuckoo, 23.

Lubbock:

--On the divination of flowers, 108;

follower of Darwin, 116;

on the cultivation of aphides, 166.

Martial Spirit of Vespa, 19.

_Membracis binotata_, insect with a sharp beak, a tree-hopper, 91.

Milkweed:

--Its matchless hospitality;

purple pompons;

its five horns, 227;

its one mission;

the humming-bird its friend, 228;

complex mechanism;

enticing fragrance;

removal of pollen on insects' legs, 229;

four captives, 230;

its honey trap;

its tenacious grip, 233;

an assortment of victims;

cumbersome handicap, 234;

a wholesale destroyer, 235.

Mint family, 122.

_Mnio-tiltidæ_, summer yellow-bird, 47.

Moccasin-flower (_Cypripedium acaule_), 205.

Moths:

--Twilight;

sphinx, 118, 190, 220;

grape-vine, 160.

Mountain laurel:

--Showers of pollen of;

curious construction of flower of;

withers if brought indoors, 124;

character of the pollen, 125.

Mouse, motley collection of food of;

mischief of, 7.

Müller, Hermann:

--On the divination of flowers, 108;

on defective observation, 114;

the relations between the flower and insect, 116;

on fertilization, 142

Nature's Equilibrium, 39.

Natural observation, 57.

Nomadic blossoms, 83.

Orchids:

--Dependence on insects, 144;

strange mechanical adaptation;

sweet-pogonia;

perfume suggesting raspberries, 145;

intention of the blossom, 146;

adaptation for insects, 147;

its fragrance a perfumed whisper of welcome, 148;

a contrast, 172;

form of invitation, 173;

insect complement, 174;

Arethusa bulbosa, 175;

theories concerning the conveyance of the pollen, 176;

the most highly specialized form of flowers, 180;

distinguished by its structure;

American varieties not air-plants;

form of flower, 181;

elasticity of the pollen of the _Spectabilis_, 182;

self-fertilizing, 183;

American and exotic species, 184;

Arethusa's fragrance, 185;

its structure, 186;

significant depth of nectar wells;

conditions demanded of insects, 187;

Gray's surmise, 188;

sphinx-moth its only complement, 190;

manner of carrying the pollen by sphinx-moth, 193;

extracting the pollen with a pencil;

length of the nectary, 196;

purple-fringed, 198;

ragged, 200;

very exceptional provision, 201;

yellow-spiked, 203;

moccasin-flower;

ladies'-slipper;

Venus's-slipper;

the color of, 205;

distinctive character of, 206;

practical experiment, 209;

imprisonment of the bee;

manner of its release, 210;

rattlesnake-plantain, 213;

Angræcum, its long nectary, 219;

tongue of a sphinx-moth eleven inches long, 220;

nectary thirteen inches long, 223.

"Origin of Species":

--First important presentation of the theory of

cross-fertilization, 105;

tardy appreciation of the work, 115.

_Odynerus flavipes_, wren-wasp, 10.

Ovid, concerning hornets, 18.

Parallels in Nature, 152.

Platanthera, orchid group, 192.

Pliny, 23.

_Pogonia ophioglossoides_, sweet-pogonia, 145.

Polistes, brown wasp, 161.

Primrose, evening, 118.

Psychid:

--A sack-bearer; drags its house with it; feeds on seed-pods, 83;

winter quarters of silk, 84.

Queer Little Family:

--Tree-hopper (_Membracis binotata_); a singular entertainment;

graceful curves, 87;

a branch in masquerade; queer thorns, 88;

a sudden disappearance; animated thorns; like a covey of quails, 89;

like "Bob White," 90;

singular agility; queer anatomy; always ready for flight, 91;

fondness for locust and oak-trees, simulating the color and character

of the branches, 92;

manner of sitting on the branches, 93;

always headed towards the top; tiny tufts of cotton, 94;

color and size of the tufts; a mere frothy shell; a riddle, 95;

its relations, 96;

an investigation, 97;

its technique, 98;

aërated cement; froth-house builder, 99;

period of hatching, 100;

a house for the winter; not a wanderer, 101.

Ragged Orchid (_H. lacera_), 200.

"Rattlesnake-plantain," 213.

_Rudbeckia hirta_, cone-flower, 138.

Sage (_Salvia officinalis_), strange curved stamen, 119;

nature's arrangement, 112.

Salvia, its welcome to the bee, 117.

Self-fertilization, 141.

Sheep-spit, 80.

Showy orchid (_H. orbicularis_),194.

Snorting war-horse, 18.

Solitude, the pleasures of, 3.

"Solomon's ant," 152.

Spectabilis, orchid, 182;

its favorite haunt, 195.

Spiders, _agalena_, _epeira_, _argiope_, 8;

a two years' span, 7;

a silken vortex;

miscellaneous food, 8.

_Spiranthes_, "Lady's-tresses," 218.

Sprengel, Christian Conrad:

--Inspiration from the wild geranium, 108;

on the mystery of color, 112;

theory of fertilization;

a poser to Linnæus, 113;

his wrong theory, 114;

divining half the truth, 176;

assumption disproved, 178.

Spume-bearer (_Aprophora_), its domicile of suds;

wonderful power of jumping, 82.

Starling, dispossessing woodpecker from nest, 43.

Studio Company:

--"Tumultuous privacy"; contested territory; snickering squirrels, 4;

selected food; unsymmetrical carpentry; drone of bees; carol of birds;

flurry of swifts; accompaniments to my toil, 5;

wild fox; pet chipmonk; pet toad; his lightning tongue;

home in a bowl, 6;

an old friend, 9.

Summer yellow-bird (_Mnio-tiltidæ_), 47.

Sweet-pogonia (_P. ophioglossoides_), 145.

Swift, Jonathan, on parasites, 44.

Tennyson, quoted, 24.

"The Secrets of Nature in Forms and Fertilization of Flowers Discovered,"

Sprengel's work, 113.

Thévenot, concerning the thrift of insects, 152.

Tiger-beetle (_Cicindela_), 68.

Toads, 6.

Toad-spit, 80.

Tree-hopper, 93.

Venus's-slipper (Cypripedium acaule), 205.

Vireo, abandons its nest, 45.

Wasps:

--Wren, 10;

microscopic, 45;

tiny black, 69;

digger, 72, 162;

orange-spotted, 79;

brown; mud, 161.

"Waxwork" bittersweet (_Celastrus scandens_), 88.

Welcome of the flowers:

--The function of the stamen, 106;

difference in cells, 107;

condition of the flower, 108;

physiological features; recognition of sex in flowers, 109;

exchange of courtesies; each flower a law unto itself, 117;

action of "jack-in-the-pulpit"; cypripedium and aristolochias;

peculiarity of the sage, 119;

queer stamens; nature's arrangement, 121;

cross-fertilization insured, 122;

showers of laurel pollen; curious construction of flower, 124;

singular greeting to the bee, 126;

remarkable interior arrangement of the Andromeda, 128;

hidden anthers of the blue-flag, 129;

intercommunication and reciprocity, 135.

Wild geranium (_G. sylvaticum_), 112.

Wild volapük, 4.

Wilson, cow-bird's eggs, 33.

Wind as a fertilizing agent, 154.

White, Gilbert, cuckoo's eggs, 32;

rich localities, 58.

Wood, Alphonso:

--On tubercles, 203;

on embarrassed bees, 235.

Woodchucks, 5.

Wren-wasp (_Odynerus flavipes_):

--A cumbersome prize, 10;

selecting a home; way stations; a second instalment, 11;

very familiar, 12;

a well-stocked home, 13;

impotent anæsthetic, 14;

manner of catching her prey; a hypodermic injection, 15;

food on storage; closing the cell after depositing egg, 16;

living food; preference for ready-made houses; resemblance to

the yellow-jacket, 17.

Zenarchus, concerning the cicada, 96.