668 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



stalk covered with a white felt-hke cap of spermatozoa with no visible 

 matrix. The structure of the spermatozoa is fully described, and a 

 general account of the breeding habits is given. FertiHsation is 

 internal, but the spermatophores are so numerous that it is :possible that 

 they are picked up by the female by chance contact. 



Pigments of Batrachians.* — A. Magnan describes the general 

 properties of the pigments extracted from the skin of Batrachians, 

 Pelobates fusciis, Raiia temporaria, etc. Green, yellow, red, black, 

 yellowish brown pigments are found to be related, for the darkest 

 may progressively become the hghtest under different influences. But 

 the opposite transformation was never observed. 



South African Barbels.f — Gr. A. Boulenger describes two new 

 species of Barbus from Africa, thus bringing up the number of recorded 

 African species to eight. The first species described, B. aspihis, came 

 from the Ja River, S. Cameroons ; the second, B. trispilomimus, 

 probably from the Congo. Only a single specimen of each has been 

 procured. 



Teleostean Scales. | — A. Hase has made a study of the form and 

 structure, the origin and arrangement of Teleostean scales. The results 

 may be summarised as follows : The scales consist of two layers, an 

 outer, or hyalodentine, and an inner, or fibrous layer. They originate 

 from an oblique papilla (the scale-rudiment), which consists of modified 

 cuticular cells or scleroblasts. These are of purely mesodermal origin ; 

 the regressive metamorphosis undergone by the basal epidermis-cells is- 

 not connected with scale-formation. The scale is inserted in a special 

 " scale-pocket " formed from loose connective-tissue. The secretion of 

 hard substance is due to two scleroblast layers which lie above the 

 scales. The bodv-segments surround the vertebral column in " W-like " 



*/ O ml 



lines, and the oblique rows of scales correspond exactly to these. They 

 therefore correspond in number to the vertebrse also. 



An introductory section treats of the " scale problem " in its his- 

 torical aspect, and the final section deals with the phylogeny of scales. 

 There is a copious bibliography. 



Parietal Sense-apparatus in New Zealand Lamprey.§ — A. Dendy 

 describes the parietal sense-organs and associated structures in Geotria 

 australis. The structure of the pineal organ (right parietal eye) and 

 parapineal organ (left parietal eye) is essentially identical, although the 

 former is much more highly developed than the latter. The connection 

 of each of the two sense-organs with the corresponding member of the 

 habenular ganglion pair need no longer be questioned. The marked 

 asymmetry in point of size of the two habenular ganglia, and of the 

 two bundles of Meynert, corresponds exactly to the unequal develop- 

 ment of the two parietal sense-organs with which they are connected, 

 and leaves no doubt as to the paired character of the whole system. 



* Comptes Rendus, cxliv. (1907) pp. 1130-2. 



t Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., cxviii. (1907) pp. 336-7. 



X Jen. Zeitschr. Naturw., xlii. (1907) pp. 607-6'4 (3 pis. and 26 figs.). 



§ Quart. Journ. Micr. Sci., li. (1907) pp. 1-30 (2 pis.). 



j: 



