116 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF 



" Description of a new species of Helix." B}^ Jas. Lewis, M .D. 



" On some Batvachia and Xematognatbi brought from the 

 Upper Amazon b}- Prof. Orton." By Edw. D. Cope. 



The resignotion of Mr. N. E. Macomber as a member of the 

 Academy Avas offered and accepted. 



Prof. Cope stated that the snakes of the genus Storeria, B. and 

 G., are viviparous like Eutsenia and other tropidonotine genera 

 to which they are allied. He had frequently' made this observa- 

 tion, but had not placed it on record so far as he knew. He also 

 stated tiiat the Colorado potato beetle had probably terminated in 

 its eastern migration, as it had appeared pretty well distributed 

 in Isew Jersej' the present season. 



Prof. Cope gave a synopsis of the result of his work in connec- 

 tion with Ha^'den's United States Geological Survey of the Terri- 

 tories during the season of IS'IS. He stated that the investigation 

 covered principally' the paleontology of the cretaceous, eocene, 

 miocene, and pliocene periods in Colorado. The whole number 

 of species of vertebrata obtained was one hundred and fift}', of 

 which ninety-five were at the time new to science. The cretaceous 

 species were both terrestrial and marine, and the miocene were 

 most numerous. These numbered seventy-five species, of which 

 fift3'-seven were new. They embraced, as especial additions to the 

 fauna, numerous reptiles and Mammalia of all the orders, espe- 

 cially Innecfivora, Rodentia, and Carnwora. Important additions 

 were the gigantic horned Si/mborodonn^ and numerous A'cry small 

 ruminants allied to the Tragulidse. He stated that the discovery 

 of the latter added a stronger resemblance to the miocene of 

 France than had been heretofore supposed to exist. The existence 

 of Elotherium and Anchitheriuin gave the fauna somewhat older 

 facies than that of France. 



He stated that the only genus of lizards that could be well 

 anal^-zed is the Pellomi(rus, Coj^e, and that this proves to be a 

 memi)er of the existing family of Gerrhonotidse, which is now 

 confined to Mexico and California. Hence, like man}' rodents, 

 but unlike the higher mammalia, these miocene lizards had con- 

 tinued with but little modification to the present day. 



He also discussed the age of the Bridger eocene, stating that it 

 had been orioinallv termed miocene by the geologists of King's 

 surve}^, and later lower miocene, or upper eocene, b}^ Marsh. He 

 had published it as eocene in 1872, and contended that it presented 

 features which indicate a somewhat earlier age tlian tliat of the 

 Paris basin. He said that there were numerous parallels of cor- 

 responding genera in the two ; the Mesonyx, Pa.lseosyops, JETi/ra- 

 chyus^ Achdenodon, Ilyop^odus, and Anaplomo7-pJw.s^ of the Bridger 

 formation, represented tlie Hyaenodon, Palseotlierium^ Lophiodon, 

 Anthracotherium, Hyr'acolherium, and Adapts of the Paris basin 



