July 1, 1S6S.J 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



155 



cult to rear in an ordinary aquarium, taking the 

 precaution to place but few together ; and here they 

 may sometimes he forced to build their houses of 

 any fancy material, at the will of their possessor. 

 The stream- and torrent-loving species are far more 

 difficult to manage, but they might probably thrive 

 in an apparatus similar to that, now so well known, 

 used in breeding salmon artificially. 



Eossil cases oiPhryganida have been discovered; 

 but it is possible that some curious objects, doubt- 

 fully referred as fossil Caddis-cases, arc in reality 

 tubes formed by the ebullition of gases in volcanic 

 mud cooled very suddenly. Some objects once 

 submitted to me seemed certainly to have been so 

 formed. 



I believe I have said enough to prove to any 

 dweller in the country the existence in the waters 

 around him of an inexhaustible field of amusement 

 and instruction. Of a truth there are " books in 

 the running brooks " ! 



NOTE ON CHiETOSPIRA. 

 By P. C. S. Roper, P.L.S., fa. 



I HAVE been much interested by the figure given 

 by Mr. Tatem, in your last number, of CJuetospira 

 Miitteri, as it proves that I found this species as 

 early as 1851, or five years prior to its being described 

 by Mr. Lachman. At that time I only met with a 

 single specimen, drawings of which I sent to several 

 naturalists, but without being able to ascertain its 

 name. I hardly thought it justifiable to publish a 

 description of it as a new species without further 

 evidence, and have never met with it again in the 

 same or any other locality. I had overlooked the 

 figures given in the last edition of Pritchard, which 

 but slightly resemble the species as I found it ; but 

 it most closely resembles that figured by Mr. Tatem, 

 and has the peculiarity of having been found living 

 in quite a different position from any heretofore 

 noticed, as both Mr. Tatem's and Mr. Lachman's 

 occurred in cells of a species of Lemna. 



Prom a note made at the time, I find my specimen 

 was procured on the 2Sth May, 1851, in a pool on 

 Snaresbrook Common, in Essex, and was found 

 inhabiting a deserted tube of Limnias ceratophjlli. 

 The body was inclosed in a semi-oval or flask-shaped 

 case inserted in the empty end of the Limnias tube, 

 the spiral arm projecting about u-s-oth of an inch, 

 having at first a tremulous motion, and when fully 

 expanded assumed a true spiral form covered with 

 long bristle-like cilia on the outer side. It was 

 very sensitive to the slightest motion of the micro- 

 scope, and contracted into its case with great 

 rapidity, but protruded its arm very slowly like a 

 Polype. The thickness of the tube it inhabited, 

 and the short time I had it alive, prevented my 



making any clear observations on its internal 

 structure ; its motions and general appearance had, 

 however, more the aspect of a fresh-water Polype 

 than of any alliance to the Stentors, its near allies. 

 It is not improbable that it may be found in many 

 localities, but its very sensitive habit is probably 

 the cause of its being overlooked, as its case would 

 scarcely be noticed by any but a most careful ob- 

 server, and the arm is only protruded after a con- 

 siderable state of quiescence when placed in a live- 

 box. 



I rather conclude from Mr. Tatem's notice that 

 he has been chiefly guided in its determination by 

 the short notice in the last edition of Pritchard. I 

 think, therefore, it may probably interest some of 

 your readers if I append to this a short account 

 from Claparede and Lachman of the genus and 

 species of CJuetospira. 



The genus, it appears, was first described by Mr. 

 Lachman in 1856, in Mueller's Archiv., p. 362, and 

 in the " Etudes sur les Inf usoires," by him, in con- 

 junction with Mr. Claparede, published in 1858-9. 

 The genus is placed in their family Bursarina. 

 This family they divide into two sub-families — the 

 first having more or less of a case or shell (coque) 

 during part of their lives, the anus situated in 

 the upper part, forming the first sub-family Sten- 

 toriens. The second has no case, and the anus 

 is situated at the posterior extremity; this forms 

 the second sub-family, or Bursarieus, properly so 

 called, and includes ten genera which I do not 

 propose to notice. The first sub-family is then 

 separated by these authors into two divisions, the 

 first having a body not truncate, or with a large 

 surface spread out at its summit ; the second with 

 a truncate body projecting from its summit, carry- 

 ing the buccal cilia;: this last forms the genus 

 Stentor. The first division is again divided into 

 two genera — first, with a buccal spire having the 

 form of a narrow band, CJuetospira ; the second, 

 buccal spire having the form of a large bilobe 

 membranous expansion, Freia. The genus Chaeto- 

 spira is said to be clearly characterized among the 

 Stentoriens by the fact of the buccal spire being 

 carried on a process in form of a narrow band, at 

 the base of which is found the mouth. They inhabit 

 a shell or case, which they can quit at times, as M. 

 Lieberkulm asserts that he has often found them 

 swimming freely in water. 



Two species were described by Mr. Lachman : 

 1st, CJuetospira Mulleri (Lachman, Mueller's Archiv., 

 1856, p. 361, Section xiii., figures 6, 7), having a 

 tough flask-shaped (lageniforme) case, apparently 

 horny; process when extended having more than 

 one turn of a spiral. Pound near Berlin, on Lemna 

 trisulca. 2nd, CJuetospira mucicola (Lachman, 

 Mueller's Archiv., 1S56, p. 364), case gelatinous, 

 process when extended not forming a complete spiral 

 turn. ' In the latter genus the first ciliae of the spire 



