180 



HAKDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



armature of its jaws." In conclusion, the author 

 indicated the characters separating Odojitopteryx 

 from the ci'ctaceous fossil skull lately described by 

 Prof. 0. C. Marsh, and which he affirms to have 

 small similar teeth implanted in distinct sockets. 



PROBOSCIS OF MOTHS AND BUTTER- 

 PLIES. 



/^lAN Science-Gossip give me any information 

 ^^ about the structure and use of the small 

 projecting bodies that clothe the extremity of the 



a 



Fig. 111. Commencement of Proboscis of a Moth ; 

 u, small tracheee ; b, large ditto. 



Fig. 112. The Tracheae more highly magnified. 



>rr^ 





i 



Fig. 113. Extremity of the Fig. 114. Six-sided organ. 

 Proboscis. side and top view. 



proboscis 'of certain moths and butterflies ? Dr. 



Carpenter speaks of them as barrel-shaped. In 

 the example I have endeavoured to figure they are 

 more like the narrow scales of the gnat. But they 

 appear to me to be six-sided bodies : the top, when 

 looked down upon from above, has the appearance 



Fig. 115. Papillse at the base of the six-sided organ. 



Fig. Il6. Hooks (a) at the edge of the Proboscis, 



of a six-rayed star. I should like also to know 

 whether the tracheae or air-tubes have been traced 

 throughout the length of the proboscis. One of 

 my preparations happens to show their commence- 

 ment at the widest part of the proboscis very 

 clearly, but I cannot follow them farther. Perhaps 

 some of your correspondents can tell us something 

 more about these curious organs, and their general 

 economy. R. H. Nisbett-Browne. 



SAND MUSSELS. 



OPF the mouths of our larger rivers, in our 

 estuaries, and along those parts of our 

 British coast where the bottom is muddy, there 

 may be found, in almost unlimited numbers, the 

 Sand Mussel {Mya areuaria). The shells are strong, 

 and held together at the hinge by means of a strong 

 articulation, almost spoon-shaped. Gwyn Jeffreys 

 has given a lively description of this mollusc, and of 

 its various names. It appears to have a tolerably 

 wide geographical distribution, forming one of the 

 many articles of Chinese diet, and occurring off the 

 coasts of the United States, where it is called the 



