SuTEK. — On Neiu Zealand Mollusca. 285 



Laoma marina, Hutt. (1883) {=L. nerissa, Hutt., 1883). 

 Shell conoidal, subperf orated, striated ; colour pale-yellow- 

 ish horn, sometimes faintly banded with chestnut, and tessel- 

 lated with the same colour at the keel. Spire conoidal, 

 rather obtuse ; whorls 5^, slowly increasing, rather flattened, 

 the last acutely keeled, delicately but rather irregularly 

 striated ; suture margined ; umbilicus covered ; aperture ver- 

 tical, subrhomboidal ; peristome thin ; columella with a large 

 acute plait ; in the adult specimens two parietal plaits, one 

 on the penultimate whorl near the outer side, the other on 

 the right lip above the keel; basal lip slightly callous. In 

 younger shells a second plait on the penultimate whorl near 

 the columella, and three blunt plaits on the basal lip, may be 

 observed. Of the basal teeth the innermost is the smallest, 

 and most frequently missing. Greatest diam. 0-13, least 0-11; 

 height, O'lin. 



3. Thera barbatula, Eeeve {-^- Helix beta, Pf., 1854). In 

 the revision of our land-shells by Professor Hutton this shell 

 is mentioned as synonymous with Th. stijjulata, Eeeve (Helix 

 alflia, Pf.) (Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. xvi., p. 193). Eecent ex- 

 perience has shown me that this is not correct, but that the 

 two species are very different, and each of them w^ell charac- 

 terized. Mr. A. Hamilton, of Dunedin, some time ago kindly 

 sent me living specimens of shells collected in the neighbour- 

 hood of his town, and amongst them was a good number of 

 Thera stipulata, E. On closer examination I found three 

 specimens which differed considei-ably from the others, and 

 on comparing them with descriptions they proved to be Thera 

 barbatula, Eeeve. In this species the diameter is only 3^mm., 

 as against 4^mm. in Th. stijndata; whilst the height is nearly 

 the same, 3^mm. and 3mm. respectively. Therefore Tli. bar- 

 batitlais trochiformed, and Th. stipulata, with a broader base, 

 conical. The first has 7 whorls, the latter only 5 to 5-|. Th. 

 stijnilata is lamellarly ribbed, the membranaceous lamellae 

 are broad, extending over the whole breadth of the whorl, and 

 ending in a short hair. Th. barbatula is strongly plaited, but 

 the membranaceous lamellae develope only near the keel, each 

 ending in a rather long filament." 



It is very likely that no difference was made between the 

 two species in the collections which passed through the hands 

 of Professor F. W. Hutton, or that Th. barbatula was wanting 

 altogether. Up to the present I have not seen the latter from 

 any other place than the neighbourhood of Dunedin, and it 

 seems to be rather scarce. 



4. Vitrinoidea dimidiata, Pf., the slug-like mollusc, was sent 

 to me some months ago by Mr. Cavell, of Boatman's, near Eeef- 

 ton, a most enthusiastic collector and conchologist, who found 



