154 The Irish Naturalist, [June, 



BKI.FAST NaTURAUSTS' F1KI.D C1.UB. 

 March 20. — The Vice-President (Mr. F. J. Bigger) in the chair. 

 During the usual half-hour " gossip " Mr. IT. L. Orr exhibited the result 

 of his examination of a portion of ordinary' wild land, measuring only 

 3 feet by 2 feet, from which he collected, on the i8th February, 38 beetles, 

 comprising 21 species— i isopod crustacean, 6 icheumons of one species, 

 a moth, a butterfly, 23 shells of seven species, 2 species of spider, and 

 a mite. Mr. Hamilton exhibited some fine Lias fossils, and Mr. Gray 

 some foliated cr3'stals of iron pyrites from Co. Down. 



At the formal meeting, held at eight o'clock, Miss S. M. Thompson 

 contributed a paper on " The supposed occurrence of a patch of White 

 Lias rock on the shore north of Macedon Point." This portion of the 

 shore of Belfast Lough was formerly covered with sand and shingle, 

 which were removed by spring storms, exposing the rock that attracted 

 Miss Thompson's attention, who considered the rock belonged to the 

 Rhaetic beds, and not to the Bunter division of the New Red Sandstone, 

 as mapped by the Geological Survey. Miss Thompson consulted 

 Professor Cole, and submitted specimens to Mr. M'Henry, of the 

 Geological Survey. Both gentlemen admitted the resemblance of the 

 rock to the beds at Waterloo, near Larne, and justified Miss Thompson's 

 provisional identification. 



The next paper submitted was from Canon H. W. LETT, on the 

 occurrence of Natterer's Bat and the Whiskered Bat in Co. Down. The 

 former he captured at Aghaderg Glebe in June, 1897, and at the same 

 place, in March, 1899, he secured a specimen of the Whiskered Bat, 

 which, as in the case of Natterer's Bat, had not previously been 

 recorded from the Co. Down. The paper furnished interesting details 

 with reference to the character and distribution of all the known species 

 of Irish bats. During the discussion that followed Mr. R. Patterson 

 exhibited a specimen of the Whiskered Bat, captured by him at Dromore 

 in July, 1899. 



Mr. Joseph Wright, F.G.S., delivered a lecture on " Post-Tertiarj' 

 Formanifera." The results of his labours tend to modify hitherto 

 accepted theories in reference to the origin of Boulder-clay, and the 

 results obtained within the area of the Field Club's investigations have 

 been confirmed by examples sent him for investigation by the Duke of 

 Argyll, Dr. Dawson, of Canada; Mr. Neilson, Scotland; Miss Andrews, 

 Wales ; Rev. Maxwell Close, Wicklow ; I. Smith, Ayrshire ; Colonel 

 Feilden, Novaya Zemlya, and many 'other contributors and correspon- 

 dents. The careful research necessary in the examination of these 

 beautiful but minute organisms may be guessed when it is considered 

 that a specimen of clay supplied by Mr. Gra)', from Bovevagli, Co. Derry, 

 which weighed only 4nbs., yielded 57 species, of which there were 

 43,000 specimens, which were so small that 100,000 could be placed on a 

 sixpence. Each communication was discussed, and after the election 

 of members the meeting was closed by the Chairman reading an 

 invitation from W. F. de V. Kane, D.L., to the Club to visit Co. Monaghan 

 during the coming summer excursions. 



