Marriner. — On the Anatomy of Hyla aurea. 257 



Art. XXIX.— On the Anatomy of Hyla aurea. 



By George R. Marriner, F.R.M. S., Assistant, Biological 



Laboratory, Canterbury College. 

 [Read before (lie Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, 6th December, 1905.] 



Plate XLV. 



PART I.— VENOUS SYSTEM. 

 Hyla aurea is the common frog now found in many parts of 

 New Zealand, where it has become plentiful since its introduction 

 from Australia some thirty years ago. As it is one of the types 

 put down for dissection in the University's biological labora- 

 tories, a description of its anatomy, illustrated by original draw- 

 ings, will, I hope, prove acceptable. 



The practical books* used in Australasia to-day all de- 

 scribe, as far as I can ascertain, the European form Rana ; and 

 though I have searched through the Transactions and Proceed- 

 ings of the learned societies of Australasia, with the exception 

 of Miss Sweet's paperf I have found nothing on the above 

 subject. If Hyla aurea corresponded closely in its anatomy 

 to Rana, this absence of literature on the former would not be 

 of much consequence ; but in many ways, and especially in the 

 veins, the difference is so marked as to make the description 

 of Rana more or less useless in a dissection of Hyla aurea. 



The veins in Hyla aurea not only differ from those of Rana, 

 but they also vary greatly in the different specimens ; and in 

 order to obtain as correct a description as possible some fifty 

 frogs have been dissected, besides many notes have been taken 

 from the specimens used in the biology classes. 



The description here appended, though not applicable in 

 detail to every specimen, will, I think, be found correct if a 

 number of frogs be dissected and the most general arrange- 

 ment of the veins be taken. 



The following are some of the more common variations : — 



1. The arrangement and size of the veins supplying the skin. 



2. The size, number, and direction of the smaller branches 

 of the external jugulars. 



3. The size and branching of the lingual veins. (Out of 

 fifteen frogs, five had these veins showing well, but they were 



* '• The Frog," A. Milnes Marshall, 6th edition ; " Anatomy of the 

 Frog," Ecker (Eng. trans., Haslem). 1889; "Practical Zoology," Parker 

 and Parker; "Atlas of Zoology," Howes. 



f " Variation of the Spinal Nerves of Hyla unreal P.R.S. Vic, vol. ix, 

 new series, p. 264. 



9— Trans. 



