192 IDENTITY OF THE AUSTRALIAN PERIPATUS, 



females were opened; each of these contained about 39 very similar 

 old embryos, a few of the proximal ones having the tentacles 

 noticeably pigmented. 



Two lots obtained early in January at the same locality in 

 different years began to produce young towards the end of the 

 month, young being especially numerous during FelDruary. 



On April 2nd, 1893, I obtained a small batch of specimens; 

 within the next fortnight six young ones were observed. 



I have seen newly-born young in every month from August 

 (only one sj^ecimen) to the early part of May. I have never seen 

 them during the latter part of May, or in June and July, and in 

 August only one surprisingly early specimen; and I should be 

 surprised to find our Peripatus breeding during the winter 

 months. Thus, while it will be seen that according to my experi- 

 ence, one cannot say of our common New South Wales that it 

 breeds all the year round, yet it certainly does during the greater 

 part — about three-fourths — of the year. The majority of the 

 young I should say were born during a period of six months — 

 say from October to March; but the progeny of a few early 

 breeders and a few late breeders add another three months. But 

 if it cannot be said to breed quite all the year round, still less can 

 any particular month by itself be selected as the breeding season. 

 And as to the contents of the uterus, I do not find in the same 

 female embryos in all stages of development, nor yet embryos 

 which are all of the same age. 



The earliest date at which I have happened to examine females 

 containing ova which had recently passed into the uterus 

 is about the middle of April; the latest about the middle of 

 October. In both cases, as well as in a female opened in the first 

 week in August, there were also enlarging ovarian ova in various 

 stages. Further observations will, I have no doubt, slightly 

 extend this period during which at intervals ova mature and pass 

 into the oviducts. From about the middle of March, or in 

 exceptionally early cases towards the end of February or 

 beginning of March, to about the middle of November or 



