426 NOTES AND COMMENTS [june 



Dr. G. H. Fowler exhibited various floating organisms obtained by 

 him on board H.M.S. " Research " from the Faeroe Channel. The deep- 

 water forms were taken by a net made to open and close when 

 desired ; they came from various depths down to 500 fathoms, the 

 temperature being in some cases as low as 30° Fahx. Of chief 

 interest were some beautiful specimens of Phaeodarian Eadiolaria, 

 notably Coeloplegma murrayanum ; these confirmed the wonderful 

 drawings of Haeckel. It was curious to see among the salt-water 

 captures an example of that parasite of fresh-water fish — Argulus 

 foliaceus. Another noteworthy occurrence was that of some shallow- 

 water Arctic forms found in the cold deep waters of the Faeroe 

 Channel. 



The Marine Biological Association attempted to illustrate the 

 methods of feeding of marine animals by a series of selected animals 

 from the neighbourhood of Plymouth. One or other of the following 

 means is usually adopted : (a) the production of currents by either 

 ciliary or muscular action ; (b) the prehension of moving prey either 

 by special organs provided with pincers, suckers, or nematocysts, or by 

 teeth and jaws ; (c) browsing upon or sucking in nutritive material, 

 either living or dead. The Association also showed charts illustrating 

 the distribution of the fauna and bottom-deposits near the 30 fathom 

 line from the Eddystone Grounds to Start Point. 



The collections made by Mr. C. W. Andrews in Christmas Island, 

 and those more recently brought by Dr. H. 0. Forbes and Mr. W. It. 

 Ogilvie Grant from Socotra, attracted much attention ; but to these 

 we have previously alluded. 



The skin of Ncomylodon was exhibited by Dr. F. P. Moreno, who also 

 showed a plaster reproduction of the skeleton of Toxodon platensis (see 

 Natural Science, vol. xiii. p. 290), as well as many skulls of other 

 extinct mammalia from Patagonia and Argentina. 



Dr. H. Sorby advocates the use of strong glycerine for preserving 

 the more translucent marine animals in museums. It makes the colours 

 of the surface bright and renders much of the internal structure distinctly 

 visible. Menthol is used by him to kill sea-anemones and similar 

 marine animals, since the addition of a little to the sea-water in which 

 the animals are living causes them to expand fully, and in many cases 

 to die so displayed. They may then be transferred to 4 per cent 

 formalin, and kept thus distended or mounted in balsam as lantern 

 slides. Some of the latter were exhibited and commented on by Dr. 

 Sorby. 



Another short lecture was that by Mr. E. Kearton, who with Mr. 

 C. Kearton has taken such admirable photographs of our native birds 

 in their natural haunts. 



Professor Arthur Thomson of Oxford considers that three factors 

 are concerned in the production of curly hair: (1) the hair shaft, (2) 

 the hair muscle, and (3) the sebaceous gland. Straight hair is always 



