68 Botanical Society of Edinburgh. 



Physoderes notata, Westw. Ohscurh brunneO'fulvescens , jyronoto 

 in medio partis anticce lineis duahus latis parallelis notisque tribns 

 lateralibus ohscuris, abdominis lateribus nigro jlavoque variis. 

 Long, corp.lin. 4^. — In Mus. Britann. 



Extract of a letter addressed by Colonel Hearsay to Mr. West- 

 wood, containing a notice of the habits of Galeodes and Scorpio, and 

 on the specific identity of Papilio Pammon and Polytes, which he 

 had observed in coitu. 



ITie Galeodes vorax of Hutton was observed running about the 

 floors of the Bungalows at Nusseerabad, as large as small mice, 

 several of which he had kept alive in glass bottles. On giving a 

 large Spliex to one, the Galeodes seized it, and though stung, soon 

 devoured it, without appearing injured by the sting. He also de- 

 scribes a battle which occurred between one of these insects and a 

 good- sized scorpion : the Galeodes was stung several times, but was 

 disabled by the scorpion either nipping or biting off a small piece at 

 the very end of one of the two long thread-like feelers, the extremity 

 of which has a process for climbing by excluding air ; for by hanging 

 by the end of these leg-feelers they can, but not easily, climb up the 

 side of a glass tumbler. On putting another Galeodes to the scorpion 

 the former seized it, and was actually thrown, more than once, vio- 

 lently to the sides of the glass from the strong muscular action of 

 the tail, and the sting fairly entered its body. The Galeodes re- 

 turned to the charge, and at last seized the tail of the scorpion near 

 the sting, the latter endeavouring, but in vain, to seize the limbs of 

 the former: as the Galeodes could not however bite through the 

 hard substance of the tail, it gradually went down it with its jaws to 

 its junction with the body, when it buried two of its fangs into the 

 .body of the scorpion, holding fast by the other two, and alternately 

 gnawing and holding by these fangs. By this means it cut off the 

 scorpion's tail from the body, and then gradually eat it — tail, sting 

 and all. 



In reference to this communication the President stated, that the 

 species of Galeodes in question, which had been named G. vorax, was 

 the G.fatalis, Hbst ; and Mr. Doubleday mentioned, that in the 

 genus Diadema {Papilio Bolina, &c.), the females of some of the 

 species occasionally exhibited the colours of the male. 



BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 



This Society held its first meeting for the session on the 13th No- 

 vember, 1845. Dr. Douglas Maclagan, President, in the chair. 



The President, on taking the chair, begged to offer a few remarks 

 on the present state and prospects of the Society. During the past, 

 as well as former sessions, many valuable papers had been read to 

 them, and much interesting botanical information, especially on some 

 of the more obscure classes of vegetables, had been brought before 

 the public through the medium of their Reports and Transactions. 

 In one respect only the Society had occasionally been deficient ; he 

 meant in the attendance of members at its meetings. This was 

 owing in great part to the circumstance that almost all the members 

 were professionally occupied, and therefore unable to give to a purely 



