188 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



Movements of Flagellates. — Jean Massart . {Bull. Acad. Roy. 

 Belgique, Classe des Sciences, 1920, 116-41, 32 figs.). A new littoral 

 form, Podomastix fahacea g. etsp. n., is somewhat intermediate between 

 Thecamoebas and Flagellata. It has long and delicate, sonletimes 

 branched, pseudopodia, and these beat the water like oars. Yet they 

 are quite transient structures. This interesting form may attach itself 

 to a foreign body, retract all the pseudopodia save in one front, and 

 glide along. In Gercohodo prlmitiva sp. n. there are permanent pseudo- 

 podic filaments, one in front and one behind. There are in this form 

 three modes of movement — free swimming, pushing along on a foreign 

 body, and an amoeboid gliding. Numerous illustrations are given among 

 Flagellata (1) of free swimming, usually accompanied by rotation of the 

 body ; (2) of swimming on a foreign body ; and (3) of amoeboid gliding. 

 Active change of shape, especially in relation to the medium, is also 

 discussed. The paper is generously illustrated. J. A. T. 



Sporozoon of Grass Snake. — E. Guyenot and A. Naville {Gomptes 

 Rendus Soc. Biol., 1920, 83, 965-6). A sporozoon, with some micro- 

 sporidian and some sarcosporidian features, occurs abundantly in 

 Tropidonotus nati'ix, in the dorsal musculature and in the connective 

 tissue. But the same parasite occurs abundantly in a species of 

 Distomum found attached to the mucous membrane of the snake's 

 stomach. It seems hkely that the sporozoon can pass through its 

 entire life-history in this fluke, and that the fluke is the agent in 

 infecting the snake. J. A. T. 



New Coccidia from Cyprinid Fishes. — S. Stankovitch {('omptes 

 Rendus Soc. Biol., 1920, 83, S33-5, 5 figs.). Descriptions of Gousski, 

 legeri sp. n. in the intestine of young larvfe of Alburnus lucidus and 

 Scardinius erythrophthalmus. All the stages of sporulation were observed, 

 also macrogametes and microgametocytes. Another species, G. alhurni 

 sp. n., from the same fishes and also from Leuciscus rutilus, in the 

 intestine and in the adjacent fatty tissue. J. A. T. 



New Species of Monocystis. — Hermann von Voss {Arch. Protis- 

 tenhunde, 1921, 42, 176-8). Description of Monocystis naidis sp. n. 

 found in abundance in the coelom of a species of Nais. It was of an 

 elongated spindle shape, narrowed anteriorly, more rounded behind, 

 usually solitary, sometimes in syzygia of two or three. The size usually 

 varied from 27 to 37 /x. in length, 6 to 7 /u. in breadth ; but some of 

 45 X 11 /A were found. A distinct pellicula epicyte shows longitudinal 

 ridges ; there is a well-developed sarcocyte ; no gelatinous layer was 

 seen ; muscle-filaments, though probably present, were not demonstrable. 

 The entocyte showed a finely granular or finely alveolar plasma. The 

 nucleus, with a distinct membrane, is spherical or ellipsoid, up to 10 /a 

 in diameter — a large karyosome with 2 to 4 chromatin fragments on a 

 linin framework. Attachment to the coelom wall suggests viscid attach- 

 ment, but there are also pseudopodic processes of the endoplasm issuing 

 through a gap in the anterior pellicula. The pellicula may also disappear 

 all over, and a coalescence of two or three somewhat amoeboid plasmo- 

 gametes is described. In such combinations a central aggregation of 

 the nuclei occurred. J. A. T. 



