76 Miscellaneous, 



abdominal cavity by transuding through the walls of the intestinal 

 canal. Through the integuments of the larvae of Melolontha, of 

 which the blood has been charged with colouring matter, we may 

 perceive, without difficulty, that the nutritive fluid bathes the viscera, 

 that there exists on each side of the body a tolerably distinctly cir- 

 cumscribed current, and that the blood returns to the heart through 

 the transverse canals which I have formerly described and which run 

 through the grooves formed by the junction of the segments, where 

 they are bounded by a certain quantity of cellular tissue. And here 

 I have been able to perceive that these canals are in communication 

 with the pericardiac chamber, from which the blood re-enters the 

 heart, as in the Arachnida and Crustacea. — Comptes Rendus, Oct. 6, 

 1851. 



ON THE OCCURRENCE OF EOLIS LANDSBURGII. 



To the Editors of the Annals of Natural History. 

 Gentlemen, 



The rare and beautiful Eolis Landshurgii of Messrs. Alder and 

 Hancock's Monograph on the Nudibranchiata, has lately occurred to 

 me on the Devonshire coast ; and as two specimens only, I believe, have 

 been previously discovered, and those in different parts of the kingdom, 

 the capture may perhaps be worth a record in the * Annals.* A 

 single specimen of this exquisite little moUusk was taken in a rock- 

 pool near Exmouth. Its bright amethystine colour at once attracted 

 my notice. It appeared like a brilliant little gem on the dark foliage 

 of the weed. 



In the course of two or three days it deposited on the side of the 

 bottle in which it was confined a delicate coil of ova. 



The specimen from which the description and figure in the ' British 

 Nudibranchiata ' were taken, was obtained on the Ayrshire coast, and 

 Mr. Alder informs me that a second has since been procured on the 

 Cheshire shore. 



I remain. Gentlemen, your obedient servant, 



Exeter. Thomas Hincks. 



DISCOVERY OF THE REMAINS OF SEVERAL ORDERS OF REPTILES 

 IN THE OLD RED SANDSTONE AND SHALES OF SCOTLAND. 



At the meeting of the Geological Society on the 1 7th, a memoir on 

 the discovery of fossil footsteps by Capt. Lambart Brickenden, and 

 of a reptile by Patrick Duff, Esq., and described by Dr. Mantell, was 

 announced for reading ; but in consequence of the protracted discus- 

 sion on a most important paper on Climate by the President, the title 

 only of this communication was read, and the consideration of the 

 novel and highly interesting subject was postponed till the next 

 meeting, January 7. The specimen discovered by Mr. Duff is a 

 small four-footed reptile, not exceeding, when living, 6 or 7 inches, 

 and was exhibited, with drawings illustrative of its anatomy, by Dr. 

 Mantell, to whom Mr. Duff had transmitted it for examination and 

 description. The fossil is a distinct impression of a great part of the 



