Smith. — Notes on New Zealand Earthiuorms. 139 



and are covered by a delicate layer of peritoneum. The com- 

 munication of the vasa deferentia with the exterior is effected 

 in a way which is unique among the Oligochceta. There is no 

 trace of an atrium — a structure which is present in all the 

 Lumbriculidce. The vasa deferentia open directly on to the 

 exterior, as in Phreoryctes and the Lumhricidce. The male 

 apertures are situated within the clitellum, and are conspi- 

 cuous when this region of the body is examined in a specimen 

 mounted entire. I have been able to recognise two pairs of 

 orifices placed upon the twelfth segment. In longitudinal sec- 

 tions two distinct male apertures are to be found on each side 

 of the body, placed one in front of the other, and on a line with 

 the oviducal pores, as well as with the apertures of the sper- 

 mathecae. The two male pores of each side of the body are 

 very much nearer to each other than the posterior of the two 

 is to the oviducal pore. It follows, therefore, that, while the 

 posterior of the two funnels is connected with a vas deferens 

 which opens upon the following segment, the anterior vas 

 deferens traverses two segments before it communicates with 

 the exterior. This is the only instance known to me of an 

 Annelid which would obviously belong to Claperede's division 

 of the LimicolcB, in which the aperture of the vas deferens is 

 situated further behind its funnel than the following segment ; 

 and this genus forms a unique instance of the vasa deferentia 

 of each side opening on to the same segment, but by separate 

 orifices. In the position of the funnel and male orifices this 

 genus appears to be intermediate between Phreoryctes on the 

 one hand and Eisenia (= Tetragonurus) on the other. In 

 Phreoryctes each vas deferens opens separately on the segment 

 behind that which contains the funnel ; in Pelodrilus the 

 anterior male pore has receded until it has come to lie in the 

 same segment with the posterior pore. 



" Ovaries. — There are a single pair of ovaries in segment xii. 

 Each is attached close to one side of the ventral nerve-cord. 

 The ovary is of an oval, somewhat pear-shaped form ; it is for 

 the most part made up of small germinal cells, and contains 

 one or two ova in advanced stages of development. The ova, 

 however, do not undergo their entire development in the 

 ovary ; masses of cells consisting of developing ova are, 

 apparently, from time to time broken off, and undergo 

 their further development in the egg-sac. The fully-mature 

 ova are laden with yolk-granules, and are of very large size ; 

 a single ovum will extend through two or three segments. 



" Oviducts. — The two oviducts open on to the interseg- 

 mental groove xii. /xiii. What strikes one about the oviducts 

 of this and other ' Limicolce ' is the small size, as compared 

 with the gigantic ova which have to find their way out of the 

 body-cavity through them. 



