G. NATURAL HISTORY AND ZOOLOGY. 351 



DECOMPOSITION OF EGGS. 



According to Mr. William Thompson, of Manchester, the 

 decomposition of eggs may be brought about by any one of 

 three different agencies. The first, which he terms " putrid 

 cell," is generated from the yolk, this swelling and absorbing 

 or mixing entirely with the white, and ending with a true 

 putrefaction. The second is that of the vibrio, the germs of 

 which (floating as they do through the atmosphere), when 

 settling on the moist surface of an egg, readily penetrate it, 

 and set in motion the putrefactive condition ; but when the 

 shell is dry such penetration is impossible. The third is a 

 fungus decomposition, in which the spores penetrate within 

 the shell as before, sending filaments through the egg, and 

 converting the white into the consistency of a strong jelly, 

 the filaments being sometimes so abundant as to cause the 

 whole contents to resemble a hard-boiled egg. 18 A, August 

 28,1874,612. 



THE BASKING SHARK. 



Professor Macalister gave an account, before the British 

 Association, of a large basking shark (Selache maximus) late- 

 ly examined by him, and he referred to the recently establish- 

 ed fact of its entire absence of ferocity, and to its feeding on 

 small crustaceans, which are caught by taking them into the 

 mouth and forcing the water through whalebone-like strain- 

 ers, between the gill arches, composed of true dentine, and 

 which prevent the food from escaping between the gill sUts. 

 15 A, August 29, 1874, 281. 



A NEW SPECIES OF CASSOWARY. 



According to a recent paper by Dr. Sclater, a hitherto un- 

 described species of cassowary is to be added to the seven 

 or eight now known as occurring in New Guinea and the ad- 

 jacent islands. This new species was taken at the southern 

 extremity of New Guinea, and has recently reached London. 

 It is closely allied to Bennett's cassowary and Westerman's 

 cassowary, and belongs to the same section of the genus, 

 having the transverse ridge across the helmet, and the want 

 of caruncles in the neck. It is described as Casuarius picti- 

 collis. The indications furnished by the discovery of this 



