58 EDWARD DRAKE CRABB. 



it as being fusiform in L. s. apprcssa. This certainly is not the 

 case in my material, for I have dissected the liver tissue away in 

 five specimens and found the ovotestis (HG}, to be very irregular 

 in form. 



Investigators apparently are not in agreement as to whether the 

 form and arrangement of the tubules of the ovotestis in some of 

 the more common gastropods is an acinous or a branched digitate 

 gland. On the one hand, some of the forms reported to have 

 an acinous gland are Helix arbustorum (Buresch, '12) ; Liinax 

 inaximus (Hoffman, '22) ; Limax cinera and Lymnaa stagnalis 

 (Baudelot, '63). On the other hand, Gatenby ('17) states that 

 the ovotestis of Helix aspersa is formed of " finger-like diver- 

 ticula " which connect with the hermaphrodite duct ; Baudelot 

 ('63) describes the ovotestis of H. pomatia as a branched gland 

 having simple digitate terminal tubules, Ancel ('02) appears to be 

 in accord with him since he uses the term " culs-de-sac " and F. C. 

 Baker ('oo) states that in L. cmarginata, var. mighclsi "the ovo- 

 testis is made up of a number of rounded or lobulated follicles." 

 In L. s. apprcssa, although the ovotestis is composed of a great 

 number of convoluted tubular parts, which are reproductive prac- 

 tically throughout, and although the lumina frequently are ir- 

 regularly distended in places, there are no typical terminal acini. 

 For this reason it should be referred to the compound branched 

 type of gland, but for the sake of clarity the custom of calling the 

 tubules " acini " will be followed. 



The hermaphrodite duct proper (HD) is a very complexly lob- 

 ulated and convoluted tube which is flexed upon itself in three 

 or more places when the animal is contracted. It originates by the 

 confluence of a number of lateral tubules, which are most notice- 

 able in that part of the ovotestis from G to beyond H, and con- 

 tinuing cephalad within the tissue of the gland, it becomes a free 

 duct at point H. This makes it necessary for those ova and 

 sperms which are formed in the anterior portion of the gland to 

 travel toward its apex in order to reach the hermaphrodite duct 

 proper. The enlarged part of the duct, especially that lying be- 

 tween H and O, functions as a seminal vesicle, and contains 

 sperms at all times in normal adults. Near its anterior end the 

 hermaphrodite duct becomes simple and filiform; then bifurcating 



