32 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Feb. 



from India, New Holland, Brazil, &c. These beetles surpass all 

 others of their class in the beauty of their metallic colouring, and 

 are used at the present day as jewelry. Other curious forms are 

 the Goliath beetles, Goliathus (CeratorrMna) guttata and G. aurata, 

 a pair of each of which, from Cape Palmas, have been received 

 from Prof. Westwood. The two species indicated are not how- 

 ever among the larger forms of the group, but are remarkable for 

 beauty of colour. These insects, like the crustaceans, were part of 

 the Rev. F. "W. Hope's collection, presented by him to the Uni- 

 versity of Oxford. Mr. Angas has kindly presented a series of 

 annelida, echinodermata, corals and sponges, from S. Australia ; 

 Mr. Whiteaves, several interesting exotic echinodermata and corals ; 

 and Principal Dawson a collection of Norwegian echinodermata. 

 The Society's collection of fossils previously consisted of a little 

 more than 300 species, and was very deficient in fossil fishes. Pains 

 have been taken to supply this deficiency, and with some success, 

 twenty-six species, from rocks of various ages, having been added to 

 the collection. The latest classification of recent fishes was briefly 

 explained, and specimens of fossil fishes, from Palaeozoic, Meso- 

 zoic and tertiary rocks, were exhibited, and their affinities de- 

 scribed. It was shewn that the Palaeozoic fishes in point of orga- 

 nization, belong to a very high order among fishes, a fact which 

 by Hugh Miller and others has been thought to militate against 

 Mr. Darwin's views as to the origin of species. Some of the 

 Palaeozoic fishes have many reptilian characteristics. Throughout 

 the Palaeozoic and in the older mesozoic age, ganoids, and sharks 

 (selachians with placoid scales) were the dominant race of fishes, 

 and true bony fishes (teleosts), which are the prevalent forms now 

 in existence, do not date farther back than the cretaceous period. A 

 number of miscellaneous European fossils were exhibited, and some 

 of the more interesting were explained verbally somewhat in detail. 

 It was stated that about 250 species had been added to the Society's 

 collection of fossils, the result of last summer's collecting in England. 

 A special vote of thanks was unanimously voted by the Society 

 to each of the donors of the specimens referred to, also a vote of 

 thanks to Mr. Whiteaves for his zeal in collecting. 



