Generaticm of the Lohularia digitata. 105 



differing much from those I had already examined. Both the 

 red and white varieties of this animal of various shades of in- 

 tensity, are found in every part of the Frith of Forth from 

 this to the opposite shore, adhering in large masses to stones, 

 shells, and fuci. At low water we observe it hanging in nu- 

 merous fleshy lobes from the under and sheltered surface of 

 rocks ; after storms, quantities of it are often left on shore, 

 adhering to marine plants and animals which have been torn 

 from their seat; and by accompanying the dredgers daily em- 

 ployed in the Forth we constantly find it brought up by the 

 dredges from deep water, spreading on all kinds of solid sub- 

 stances lying at the bottom, as broken bottles, glasses, shells, &c, 

 Jussieu examined the structure of this animal with the mi- 

 croscope, on the coast of Normandy, more than eighty years 

 ago, and has given accurate representations of many parts of 

 its structure (Mem, de VAc. 1742. J. Mr Ellis, who mentions 

 it as occurring in great plenty round all the coasts of the Bri- 

 tish islands, has given many excellent figures illustrating its 

 internal structure, the appearance and situation of its ova, and 

 their mode of passing out through the bodies of the polypi 

 (Phil Trans, liii. PL XX.J. He has placed groups of 5 — 8 

 loose ova in each of the canals below the polypi, and similar 

 groups in the transparent bodies of the polypi below the 

 stomach, which are represented passing up one after another 

 towards the mouth. It is to be regretted that he has not left 

 a full description of the interesting appearances represented 

 in these figures. Dr Spix of Bavaria, without noticing the 

 accurate and elegant plates of Mr Ellis, and with a low esti- 

 mation of the labours of our distinguished countryman, has 

 given several figures to illustrate the mode of generation of the 

 Lobularia (Ann, du Mus, L xiii. PI. XXXI 11.^, which differ 

 as much from nature as they do from the plates of his prede- 

 cessor. He has represented the head of the polypus as con- 

 sisting of a large round vesicle or stomach, to the sides of 

 which are closely applied eight thick cylindrical claviform ten- 

 tacula covered with minute papillae; descending from the 

 stomach he has represented a long narrow tapering tube, and 

 the ova are placed in a single line, inclosed in a small curved 

 canal, like a string of beads. His observations correspond 



