134 EXCURSIONS OF THE PAST YEAR. 



Dr. Ramsbotham sends us the following : — 



" A Volvox glohator becoming partially entangled amongst some 

 confervte, I bad an opportunity of observing that which I had never 

 seen before, viz., that the young organisms within the parent globe, 

 on moving in various directions, propelled some of the minute 

 green spots beyond the circumference of the sphere; they were again 

 attracted and again repelled, when by an apparently stronger push 

 one or two were entirely separated, and sent afloat, gradually dis- 

 appearing from view." 



Mr. Ward remarks : — 



" One Volvox of about -^ in. diameter contained six smaller ones 

 each about -^ in. There was an aperture in the parent cell-wall 

 through which I saw four of the six escape in quick succession. 

 Each one took some few seconds to get through, as the opening 

 seemed exactly as large as the spheres, and as soon as the way was 

 clear another presented itself at once. The two last, though 

 revolving freely, never made an attempt to pass through whilst I 

 watched them. A second Volvox, of larger size, but with smaller 

 internal globes, contained a foreign body (from the outline I thought 

 a dead rotifer). With a high power I could distinctly focus front 

 of cell-wall, then this body, and lastly back of cell. I could detect 

 no aperture, howeyer, in the cell." 



In addition to the foregoing list of aquatic organisms Dr. 

 Braithwaite collected the following mosses and hepaticse, dried 

 specimens of which he has presented to the Club : — 



Sphagnum cymbifolium 



acutifolium 



Pleuridium subulatum 

 Dicranella heteromalla 

 Dicranum scoparium 

 Pottia truncata 

 Ceratodon purpureus 

 Barbula muralis 

 Funaria hygrometrica 

 Webera nutans 

 Bryum capillare 



argenteum 



Atrichum undulatum 

 Polytrichum commune 



Polytrichum piliferum 

 Brachythecium albicans 



'- velutiuum 



rutabulum 



Eurhynchium prajlongum 

 Hypnum cuspidatum 



stramineum 



fluitans 



cupressiforme 



Jungermannia albicans 



inflata 



divaricata 



Lophocolea bideutata 



heterophylla 



April 18. Barnes Common. 



Various larva? and entomostraca were collected from the large 

 ponds. In small pools behind the Cemetery were found Conochilus 



