128 Transactions of the Society. 



VI. — British Enchytrseids. 

 By The Eev. Hilderic Friend, F.R.M.S. 



(Bead February 18, 1914.) 

 Figs. 15 to 19. 



VI. New Species and Revised List. 



During the past year my researches into this interesting group 

 of microscopic Annelids have been diligently continued by the 

 aid of a Government grant, and with the valued co-operation of 

 Mr. H. Hillman, of Nottingham, who has, both in that county 

 and in Jersey, discovered many interesting species, two of which 

 I propose to name after him in recognition of his invaluable aid. 



In the last paper which I had the honour to submit to this 

 Society (1)* I gave a brief outline of Enchytrseid characters, and 

 it will suffice if the reader turns to page 255 (Vol. for 1913) for 

 such details as he may require to enable him to follow the present 

 descriptions. The progress made in this study renders it necessary 

 to bring our knowledge of the group to a focus, and it is proposed 

 in the present paper to deal in the first place with such new species 

 as have been added to the family, or whose definition requires 

 criticism, and then to tabulate results and give a revised catalogue 

 of species known to Britain. 



Since, however, the red-blooded Enchytraeids (Marionina and 

 Lumbricillus) still await careful revision, and the family is now so 

 extensive, it will be necessary for the present to con tine attention 

 entirely to the genera with colourless blood. It must not, how- 

 ever, be thought that the colour of the blood is taken as a generic 

 character, since we occasionally find red, pink, and yellow blood 

 outside the range of the two genera {Marionina and Lumbricillus) 

 in which red is the normal colour. Several of the genera possessing 

 white blood have yielded good results during the year. I have 

 personally explored some new localities as well as many old ones, 

 and during my brief vacation spent some time in Germany and 

 Belgium ; but these countries did not yield much of special interest 

 which was not already known to me at home. The truth is that 

 Great Britain is peculiarly rich in Enchytraeids, and though Bretscher, 

 Issel, and others have found a goodly number in Switzerland and 



* The figures in brackets refer to the Bibliography at the end of the paper. 



