ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 369 



Fresh-water Algae in Culture.* — R. Chodat publishes a full account 

 of his researches into the life-history and polymorphism of many species 

 of fresh-water algae, thus supplementing his " Etude Critique " which 

 appeared in 1909. In an Introduction he gives a definition of a species 

 of the lower algae, pointing out the frequent impossibility of identification, 

 the physiological and morphological characters to be taken into account, 

 and the changes which take place in the cells and cell-colonies under 

 cultivation. The author then describes in detail the behaviour of many 

 and various species when cultivated. In another section a large number 

 of different lichen gonidia and allied species under culture are described. 

 A special chapter treats of the gonidia of Verrucaria, which do not belong 

 to Phurococcus, but to a new genus, Coccobotrys. Protococcus viridis is 

 discussed, and other species. Finally the author offers certain criticisms 

 to Wille's systematic arrangement of the Green Algae, as published in 

 Engler and Prantl's Naturlichen Pflanzenfamilien, as a result of his 

 studies. 



Unicellular Algae.f — Amelie Hoffmann-Grobety describes her ex- 

 periments in the culture of certain small green algae. Raphidium minu- 

 tum and Botrydiopsis minor were examined in regard to the effect on 

 them of various culture-media. Ghlorella ccclastroides Chod. and G. 

 rubescens Chod. were cultivated in order to watch their behaviour and 

 to establish the differences between them. The results are described. 



Red Snow.J — L. Wittmack drew attention at a meeting of the 

 Deutscher Botanischer Gesellschaft in 1913 to a loose plate in his posses- 

 sion representing rocks in Baffin's Bay covered with red snow. It was 

 shown to be a plate from a child's book copied from the original of 

 Captain John Ross. The description from Ross's " Voyage of discovery 

 made in H.M. ships 'Isabella' and 'Alexandra,'" London 1819, is 

 quoted in the words of the German translation, Leipzig 1820. Ross 

 recognized the minute red bodies as being a vegetable product, for- 

 merly named Uredo nivalis. 



Gonidia of Cladonia.§ — M. Korniloff has grown under culture the 

 gonidia of Cladonia pyxidata and G. furcata, and establishes their 

 identity as two different species of Gystococcus. Details of both are 

 given. 



Chloronium mirabile.|| — J. Buder describes a new and peculiar 

 organism found by him in the water tanks of the Leipzig Botanic 

 Garden and other similar localities. These small green bodies resemble 

 small forms of Ghromatium, with which indeed they are often found. 

 They have the shape of a fairly thick cylinder, with rounded ends which 



* Beitr. z. Kryptog. der Schweiz. Bern : Wyss,1913, Baud iv. Heft 2, 266 pp. 

 (9 pis. and 201 figs.). 



+ Bull. Soc. Bot. Geneve, ser. 2, iv. (1912) pp. 73-110. 



X Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Gesell., xxxi. (1914) Suppl. pp. (35) -(37). 



§ Bull. Soc. Bot. Geneve, 2 ser., v. (1913) pp. 114-32. 



|| Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Gesell., xxxi. (1914) Suppl. pp. (80)-(97) (1 pi.). 



