154 The Field Naturalist's Quarterly May 



local name for the dark and rather unproductive clay soil." — Rev. 

 Gregory Bateman, Bratton Clovelly, Devon. 



"The reference to estivation in serpents on p. 22 of the last issue of 

 the F. N. Q. has a special interest to me, as suggesting a parallel case in 

 the DaphniadcE. In these Entomostraca there is occasionally found a 

 structure called the 'ephippium.' The ephippium gets its name from 

 its close resemblance in shape to a saddle. It is attached to the inside 

 of the hinge or junction of the two valves of the carapace, and is cast ofif 

 when the animal next moults, or casts its skin. It used to be customary 

 to call the eggs contained therein 'winter eggs,' and it was assumed that 

 the object of the special thickened envelope was to protect the eggs 

 from frost, although the structure was quite inadequate for such a 

 purpose. Now, I have only occasionally come across any daphnias 

 with the ephippium, but it is significant that in every instance the 

 occurrences were in the summer, and in shallow water that was rapidly 

 drying up. The inference is, I think, obvious — viz., that the special 

 covering of the eggs is provided as a protection against drought, and for 

 this it is no doubt perfectly adequate. I may add that the ordinary 

 summer eggs are produced parthenogenetically, the ephippial eggs 

 sexually. Males are rare in the whole order of the Entomostraca, and 

 in some species have never yet been observed. Whenever I have 

 found the ephippium I have found males present." — H. E. Forrest, 

 Shrewsbury. 



" In your interesting Reptile Studies in the F. N. Q., you allude to 

 the adder's habit of swallowing its young ones as ' alleged,' so you will 

 be perhaps interested to know that it has been observed repeatedly, 

 and to be able to ascertain that the fact is not of uncommon occurrence. 

 In the autumn of 1875, whilst shooting over the Landing Estate, 

 Newby Bridge, at the head of Windermere Lake, my keeper, who 

 was climbing the fell in advance of me, struck and crippled a large 

 adder which was basking on a flat crag surrounded by a number of 

 young ones. By the time I got to the spot the man told me that 

 three of them had already gone down the adder's throat, and while 

 I was watching, one by one all the rest did so. After a few minutes 

 the old adder died, and the young came out one by one. We killed 

 them as they came, only one escaping. We then had ten or eleven 

 dead, I forget which number exactly. They were about 6 inches in 

 length, and it seemed wonderful that they could have been packed 

 simultaneously in the body of the adder-mother. The gamekeeper 

 is still alive, and his name is John Harrison, Finsthwaite, Newby 

 Bridge, and I have no doubt he would be able to produce the testimony 

 of many others to more recent observations of the same fact." — Albert 

 Pififard, Felden, Boxmoor, Herts. 



(Our correspondent may be interested to know that during the last 

 five years we have received over 150 statements of a similar character 

 to his ; but in spite of offering rewards — which the Editor of the ' Field ' 

 has also done for many years — we have never been able to obtain a 



