THE NAUTILUS. 91 



director of the Marine Laboratory at San Pedro, in recognition of his 

 important services to marine zoology. 



JAPANESE VIVIPARA IN CALIFORNIA. 



BY ROBERT E. C. STEARNS. 



In the NAUTILUS for February, 1892, Mr. Williard M. Wood 

 mentions the presence of " Paludina Japonica " (as determined by 

 Mr. W. J. Raymond), in the Chinese market in San Francisco, 

 where he saw a bucket-full of living specimens, being part of the 

 first lot brought alive from Japan, where they are collected in the 

 rice-fields near Yokohama, and are sold for a few cents a quart. 

 They are called by the Chinese " Tsen law." Subsequently Mr. 

 Wood (NAUTILUS, September, 1892), mentions seeing the same spe- 

 cies and certain forms of Anodonta in an aquarium in a shop in the 

 Chinese quarter of San Francisco. 



A year or more ago, Mrs. A. E. Bush, of San Jose, sent me a few 

 examples of a Vi'vipara,a quite familiar Japanese form. One living 

 specimen sent to Dr. Pilsbry, he kindly determined for me as V. 

 stelmaphora Bgt. (= V. malleata Rve.), " it is a female and gives us 

 plenty of young," etc. From Mrs. Bush's note it appears that the 

 species may now be collected, or might have been at the time she 

 sent the specimens, in San Jose, and also in a little valley at (he foot 

 of Mount Hamilton. The examples received from her were collected 

 at the former place. The first specimens from the several regions 

 were detected by a boy, at a point seven or eight miles from San Jose. 

 In wheeling over the floor of a little lake that was dry at the time, he 

 picked up the shells and gave them to a friend who was interested 

 in conchology. 



From the above it is quite evident that somebody planted this 

 Asiatic form thereabout, presumably some of the Japanese or Chinese 

 living in the neighborhood. It may be remembered that the Euro- 

 pean Helix aspersa was planted in San Jose forty years ago ; in 

 course of time the mollusca of the region may exhibit quite a cosmo- 

 politan aspect. 



Los Angeles, Oaf., Oct. 22, 1901. 



