New species of Japanese ant will be described in a series of papers. As a first part the following four new species are described: Hypoponera nubatama, Formica hayashi, Acropyga kinomurai and A. yaeyamensis. Hypoponera nubatama is distinguished from the other East Asian congeners by having the following characteristics: antennal scapes reaching the posterior margin of head; eyes consisting of 3 facets and situated near the posterior margin of clypeus; petiolar node thin, with convex dorsal outline; body color black. [Distribution: Japan (Honshu, Kyushu)]. Formica hayashi seemingly resembles F. japonica, but can be distinguished from the latter by the number of erect hairs on 2nd gastral tergite excluding a row of hairs on posterior margin, relatively long antennal scapes and rounded posterolateral corners of head in frontal view. [Distribution: Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, Yaku-shima; Korea]. Acropyga kinomurai is separated from the other Asian congeners by the 4-toothed mandibles, 11-segmented antennae, small eyes each consisting of 5-6 facets, wide head (CI more than110) and flat dorsum of alitrunk. [Distribution: Japan (Yaeyama Is.)]. Acropyga yaeyamensis is distinctive in having the 4-toothed mandibles, 10-segmented antennae, and small body size (TL less than 2.0 mm). [Distribution: Japan (Yaeyama Is.)].

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The following fifteen new species are described: Ponerinae; Ponera kohmoku, P. takaminei, P. tamoti, P. hishamon, Anochetus shohki. Cerapachyinae; Cerapachys daikoku, C. hashimotoi. Myrmicinae; Oligomyrmex borealis, O. oni, O. hannya, O. yamatonis, Monomorium hiten, Rhopalomastix omotoensis, Myrmecinci amamiana, M. ryukyuensis. Ponera swezeyi (Wheeler) and Oligomyrmex sauteri Forel are recorded for the firs ttime from Japan.

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The wood anatomy of six species of Betula from Siberia was described. These six species share typical wood anatomical characters of Betula in general. Two small shrubs, B. fruticosa subsp. montana and B. nana subsp. rotundifolia, are distinguished from the others in having smaller and shorter vessel elements, shorter fiber tracheids, shorter axial parenchyma strands, more numerous marginal cells of multiseriate rays. These two species consistently have shorter vessel elements, from near the pith throughout the secondary xylem to the outermost part, than a tree species, B. microphylla. It is discussed whether this feature is characteristic of the small shrubs of Betula.

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Flower choice of Apis cerana japonica was studied using color dimorphic artifici afllower patches when reward differences were correlated with flower colors. Behavior of bees visiting flower patches containing blue and yellow flowers was compared to behavior on flower patches containing blue and white flowers. When presented blue-yellow dimorphic flower patches some bees visited only blue flowers while the remaining bees limited visitatio nto yellow flowers. That flower fidelit ypersiste din spite of reward quality, quantity, or frequency differences existing between flower colors (Individual Constancy Behavior). In contrast, bees visiting blue-white dimorphic flower patches each extensively visited both blue and white flowers when rewards did not diffe rbetween the two flower colors. However, bees limited visitatio nto the blue color morph when blue flowers offered a reward of higher quality than that offered by white flowers. Those bees would switch to white flowers when the white color morph contained the higher quality reward (Energy Maximization Behavior). Bees did not respond to reward quantity differences on blue-white dimorphic flower patches, nor was a consistent response to reward frequency differences observed on blue-white dimorphic flower patches. Foraging of the Japanese honeybees, A. c. japonica, was like that reported for European honeybees, A. mellifera, but different from that of Indian honeybees, A. c. itidica.

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The pre-Cretaceous rocks in the Iwai-Kanyo area, southern Kanto Mountains are assignable to the Takamizuyama, Musashi, and Nishitama Groups. The former two groups are composed of the upper Lower to Middle Jurassic sandstone and shale containing exotic blocks of basaltic rocks, limestone, and chert of late Early Carboniferous to Late Triassic age. The Nishitama Group is a coherent stratigraphic unit composed of six formations : the Oguno (Dorashamian), Iwai (Scythian), Kaizawa (Anisian), Arai (Carnian), Kayakubo (Norian) and Kanyo (Norian possibly ranging up to Lower Jurassic). Among them, the Kaizawa Formation is newly designated herein for the oolitic limestone yielding such diagnostic Anisian foraminifers as Glomospira densa and Meandrospira dinarica of the Tethyan faunal aspects. These formations are repeated or remain isolated on account of thrust fault structure. Revised stratigraphy of the Nishitama Group in the Iwai-Kanyo area is described in this paper. Detailed geologic maps, columnar sections ,and lis tof the Anisian foraminifers are presented.

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The habitat and the number of Habenaria radiata, one of the vulnerable and endangered wild orchids in Japan, decreases year by year. It is necessary to develop an effective method to propagate this species. By applying in vitro germination and culture techniques, it was found that the seeds of thi sspecies germinated in a few weeks on artifici amledia and acclimated easily .Furthermore, the term of growth from seedlings to full-grown was significantl yshorter than other Orchidaceae investigated .A large number of bulbs were obtained and the morphological and physiological characteristic sof plants grown from them were examined in 1994 and 1995. Some characteristic sof individua lclones, e.g .number of leaves ,size of the flowers, and arc of the lip remained stable over the two years. Positive comparative correlations were found between many characteristics ,for example weight of the bulb and stem diameter, length of the stem and length of the leaf ,length of the leaf and the number of leaves, the length of the leaf and the number of flowers, length of the leaf and stem diameter, width of the leaf and stem diameter, the number of leaves and the number of flowers. Several variant phenotypes such as albinos, dwarfs, variegated leaves, unopened flowers and green-striped flowers that are similar to reported mutants, were produced. The effectiveness of seed propagation and problems associated with variants is discussed.

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