Sei>t. 1, 1S6C] 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



201 



it seems doubtful whether the egg has any claim to 

 be considered British, Mr. Sharpe having, appa- 

 rently, been much deceived on the subject. Mr. 

 Henry Stevenson, of Norwich, mentions in the 

 same periodical that the bird occurs in Norfolk 

 only "as a rare straggler-." he also states that he 

 "never heard of its nesting, the birds being invari- 

 ably shot on their first arrival." The Rev. E. 0. 

 Morris, in his "Nests and Eggs of British Birds," 

 states that the eggs vary in number from four to 

 six, "and are of a pale whitish-green colour." 



The general appearance of the Little Bittern is 

 very striking. The head is somewhat large in pro- 

 portion to the body, and is surmounted by a black 

 crest. The general hue of the feathers is a rich 

 sienna-brown, with black and white markings : the 

 legs and feet are yellowish-green. The long neck 

 and beak, and peculiar head, show its relationship to 

 the Common Bittern {A. stellaris). The bird does 

 not measure more than eighteen inches from top to 

 toe, and its weight is remarkably trifling. When 

 flying, the bird much resembles a woodcock ; and 

 was at first considered as such, both by Mr. Marshall 

 and Mr. Hart. It occurs in Sweden, Germany, 

 Holland, France, and Italy, as well as in various of 

 the islands of the Mediterranean. Asia also pro- 

 duces it; and it is mentioned as having been 

 observed in Africa by recent travellers. The 

 reclaiming of our various fen-districts may have 

 resulted in the extermination of the Little Bittern 

 from localities where it may formerly have been 

 abundant ; in which case it is not the only treasure 

 which nature has lost while yielding to art. 



Bewick's information about the Little Bittern is 

 very scanty, but his figure of it may be preferred to 

 that of Yarrell. Eor further information regarding 

 this species, as well as for a figure and technical 

 description, reference may be made to Yarrell, 

 Macgillivray, or the Rev E. 0. Morris's " Birds 

 of Great Britain." B. 



The Importance of definite Principles. — 

 ****** More bones enter into the for- 

 mation of the skull in fishes than in any other ani- 

 mals ; and the composition of this skull has been 

 rightly deemed the most difficult problem in compa- 

 rative anatomy. "It is truly remarkable," writes 

 the gifted Oken, tc whom we owe the first clue to 

 its solution, " what it costs to solve anyone problem 

 in philosophical anatomy. Without knowing the 

 what, the how, and the why, one may stand, not for 

 hours or days, but weeks, before a fish's skull, and 

 our contemplation will be little more than a vacant 

 stare at its complex stalactitic form." — Professor 

 Owen's " Principal Forms of the Skeleton." 



Botanical Mem. — Why is Opium like a truthful 

 father ? Because it is Papa-veraceous. — Fun. 



POISON-EANGS OE SPIDERS. 



TN one of your later numbers you asked for one 

 -*- or two " little facts " relative to this subject. 

 May I trouble you with the following :— 



Nearly 200 years ago.Leeuwenhoek alluding to this 

 fact of the spider, describes it as follows : — " And in 

 each of these fangs (for so I will call them) is a 

 small aperture, through which, in all probability, a 



Fig. ig~. Fang of a Spider, from Leeuwenhoek. 



liquid poison is emitted by the spider at the time it 

 inflicts the wound ;" and he gives the above 

 diagram (fig. 197). This representation is that of 

 a fang " as seen through the microscope ;" and 

 he says further: — "At i is to be seen the small 

 aperture I have mentioned, which aperture ap- 

 pears the same on hoth sides of each fang, and 

 through this we may reasonably conclude the spider 

 ejects its venom." 



In the History of British Spiders lately published 

 by the Ray Society (a work which some of your 

 correspondents would do well to consult before 

 writing to you), Mr. Blackwall states, " The fang is 

 very hard, curved, acute, and has a small fissure 

 near the point, which emits a colourless fluid secreted 

 by a gland." 



But the presence of these small openings in the 

 fangs of a spider may be still more satisfactorily 

 proved by any one who has a moderatemicroscope ; he 

 must, however, examine the inner surface of the fang, 

 which is towards the mouth, and view it as an opaque 

 object with the lieberkuhn. I have never seen the 

 opening on the outer surface of the fang, and the 

 fact of Leeuwenhoek remarking that the "aper- 

 ture appears the same on both sides of each fang " 

 might incline one to believe that he never saw it at 

 all; but no one can hold such an opinion after 

 examining the exact drawing he gives. Neverthc- 



