i")88 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



Cambrian Trilobites.* — C. D. Walcott establishes Burlingida\ a 

 new family for Burlingus g. n., and describes Albertdla g. n. in the 

 family Paradoxals, Oryctocara g. n. in the family Olenidae, and new 

 species of Zacanthoides, Neolenus, and Bathyuriscus. 



Annulata. 



Thoracic Nephridia of Hermellidae.f — Armand Dehorne describes 

 in Sdbellaria two thoracic nephridia, independent of one another, each 

 provided with an internal vibratile funnel and a lateral external pore, 

 and resembling the Cirratulid not the Serpulid type. 



Epidermis of Travisia forbesii.J — L. dn Reau finds that the epi- 

 dermis of this Polychfet consists of cubical cells covered by a thick 

 cuticle, that this cuticle gives passage to papilla? which coalesce ex- 

 ternally, simulating a second epithelium. This is an exaggeration of the 

 free filiform papillae of Stylarioides plumosa, the more swollen papilla? of 

 Flabdligera affirm, and the short, swollen, appressed but not fused, 

 papillae of Brada gran ulata. 



Polychaets of AmboinaJ — A. Malaquin and A. Dehorne report on 

 a collection made by Bedot and Pictet, including Nereis picteM sp. n., 

 Eupolyodontes aniboinensis sp. n., the new genus Euearunculata (an 

 Amphinomid with arborescent branchiae, a strongly developed cordif orm 

 trilobed caruncle, a single dorsal cirrus to the parapodium, simple, never 

 bifid setae), with the species E. yrubei. 



Brain and Nuchal Organ of Notopygos labiatus. || — A. Malaquin 



and A. Bedot give a description of these parts in this Amphinomid. 

 Their study of the caruncle or nuchal organ in Notopygos (as also in 

 Euearunculata) shows a highly developed vascularisation, and within the 

 cavity bathed by the vessels they find a large quantity of mesenchyme 

 cells (amcebocytes, "Mastzellen," pigmented cells, etc.). They give strong 

 reasons for believing j that this sensory organ has been derived from 

 a srill. 



i~ j 



Artificial Parthenogenesis in Thalassema mellita.f — G. Lefevre 

 has given an account of an experimental study of artificial partheno- 

 genesis in the Echiuroid Thalassema mellita, which is specially favour- 

 able for experiment, because of the ease with which the sexes can be 

 distinguished. The investigator's main purpose was to study the mor- 

 phobgical phenomena concerned in artificial parthenogenesis, and 

 especially, by a careful cytological examination of the material, to com- 

 pare, as far as possible, the development artificially produced with the 

 normal events leading up to the formation of the larva. He finds that 

 the unfertilised eggs may be induced to develop parthenogenetically into 

 actively swimming trochophores by immersion for a few minutes in 



* Smithsonian Misc. Coll., liii. No. 2 (1908) pp. 13-52 (6 pis.), 

 t Comptes Rendus, cxlvi. (1908) pp. 838-40. 

 X Tom. cit., pp. 840-2. 



§ Revue Suisse Zool., xv. (1907) pp. 335-400 (9 pis. and 20 figs.). 

 || Tom. cit., pp. 372-400. 

 i Journ. Exper. Zool., iv. (1907) pp. 91-149 (6 pis.). 



