and the Wintet'-egg of the Bryozoa. 341 



of Bombay, where no doubt there are more, for I did not parti- 

 cularly look for these, and have not yet had time to look for 

 others. 



The marine Paludicellay or rather Polyzoon, belonging to 

 Prof. Allman^s suborder " Cyclostomata '^ (for the tentacular 

 sheath is wholly evaginated during the extrusion of the animal), 

 which lives in the brackish water of the marshes of Bombay, as 

 just stated, accumulates itself round rushes {Scirpus), accompa- 

 nied by numerous species of Vorticellina, among which is that 

 beautiful and interesting Vaginicola described and called by 

 Dr. S.Wright ^^Lagotia viridis^" — interesting because, although 

 no more than an invaginated Stentor, its lip is so prolonged 

 intc^ two slips surrounded by cilia, moving in the same manner 

 and performing the same offices as those of the tentacula of the 

 Polyzoa, that it no doubt forms the first step from the Vorticel- 

 lina to these animals. 



I have already stated where I found the Plumatella, which 

 appears to be P. repens, Van Ben., and P. stricta, Allm., as it 

 is repent and has exactly the same form of statoblast. 



The Lophopus is essentially L, crystallinus, but with a different 

 form of statoblast, so that it is probably a new species ; but this 

 I leave others who are acquainted with the freshwater Polyzoa 

 better than myself to determine, merely observing that, should 

 it be considered a new species, the form of the statoblast will 

 afford the chief distinguishing character, as it does in the amor- 

 phous Spongillm, which is another point of resemblance between 

 these two organisms. [But why is Prof. Allman's figure of the 

 statoblast of L. crystallinus elliptical and without spines f, while 

 that figured by Dumortier and Van Beneden is orbicular and 

 with spines J?] I have not, however, been able to trace the 

 gelatinous envelope, which Prof. Allman calls the '^ ectocyst/' 

 beyond the base of the coenoecium or polypidom of this Lophopus, 

 where it looks to me like the deciduous tunic of the first or 

 original group, although I have had the opportunity of examin- 

 ing the coenoecium on bodies (the shells of Paludina Bengalensis) 

 from which it has never been removed. The group no doubt 

 can move from place to place, if necessary ; but its habit is to 

 remain fixed. 1 have seen a single animal, too, crawling on its 

 disk or lophophore by means of its tentacula, which then ap- 

 peared to adhere to the glass in a suctorial manner. 



On the following point, however, I, with much diffidence, 

 differ from Prof. Allman, viz. where he feels inclined to identify 

 the Xanthidia with the sporangia of Desmidiese rather than with 

 the stato blasts of the Polyzoa, in opposition to Turpin^s views('^ 



* Edinb. New Phil. Journ. vol. vii., 1858. ^ 



t Op. cit, X Polyp, comp. d'Eau douce, pi. 6. fig. 22, 1842. 



