464 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



To the Proceedings of the U.S. National Museum (vol. xxxv. 

 p, 351) Dr. Hay has contributed another paper on dinosaurs, 

 dealing in this instance with the carnivorous type. The 

 paper is largely concerned with matters of nomenclature ; 

 but attention is specially directed to the skull of Ceratosaurus 

 nasicornis as the best-preserved example of the cranial 

 osteology of this group of reptiles at present known. Among 

 the most remarkable cranial features is the apparent bordering 

 of the internal nasal passage almost entirely by the palatines, 

 and only slightly by the vomer. In any case, the vomer takes 

 a much less important share in the border of the posterior 

 nostrils than is the case in the tuatera and lizards. In a short 

 article published in Science for October 10, the same author 

 criticises Dr. Holland's interpretation of the skull of Diplodocus, 

 and proposes other determinations. 



The British Jurassic crocodilian fauna has been augmented 

 by the identification from the Oxford Clay near Peterborough 

 of remains referable to Mctriorhynchus brac/ryrostris, a member 

 of the unarmoured marine metriorhynchine group previously 

 known only from the equivalent formation of the Continent. 

 These remains, which include a nearly complete skull, have 

 been described by Mr. E. T. Leeds in the Quarterly Journal 

 of the Geological Society of London. The skull shows that the 

 vomer extends backwards nearly to the sphenoid — a feature 

 probably common to the group generally. 



The only work relating to fossil snakes appears to be the 

 identification by Mr. M. Leriche, in a paper published at 

 Lyons, of remains of the genus Palceophis in the Nummulites 

 of Aude. 



For several years past Dr. J. C. Merriam has been working 

 assiduously at the Triassic representatives of the Ichthyosauria, 

 and the' full results of his labours have been published in 

 a richly illustrated quarto, forming No. 1 of the first volume 

 of the Memoirs of the University of California. Aftei an ex- 

 haustive review of their history and their geographical and 

 geological distribution, the author points out the features by 

 which these reptiles differ from their Jurassic and Cretaceous 

 successors. These he finds to be nearly all connected with 

 adaptation to an aquatic existence, as indeed are most of 

 the characteristics by which the entire order is usually defined. 

 As might be expected, these adaptive modifications are less 



