RESEARCHES IN HELMINTHOLOGY AND PARASITOLOGY. 1 35 



By transmitted light the spores appeared so faintly colored that 

 the tint was undetermined ; by reflected light in mass the}' appeared 

 of a greenish hue. The receptacles, including the sporophores, ap- 

 peared fuscous by transmitted light, but white by reflected light. 



In M. Robin's plate of A. nigresccns he represents most of the 

 fruiting stems as articulated, but in our plant none of this character 

 were detected. 



[February, 1875. No. 417. See Bibliography.] 



Notes on Some Parasitic IVorfns (with drawing). — Prof. Leidy re- 

 marked that Mr. Henry Horn, assistant superintendent at the 

 Zoological Garden, had given to him several specimens of worms, 

 recently passed by a Bengal tiger. There are three males and eight 

 females, and they appear to be the Ascaris niysta.w which has been 

 found in many other feline species, including the domestic cat and 

 the lion. The characters of the worms from the tiger are as fol- 

 lows : Body almost equally tapering towards the extremities. Fe- 

 male — Cephalic end inflexed, with long narrow semi-lanceolate alae. 

 Caudal end straight ; tail short, conical, subacute. Male — Cephalic 

 end straight, alated. Caudal end inflexed, and furnished with a 

 row of about two dozen minute round papillae on each side ventrally ; 

 tail short, conical, acuminate. lycngth of females from 2 to 3;^ 

 inches; thickness from i-4th to y^. line. Length of males from 13 

 to 16 lines ; thickness from i-6th to i-5th line. 



Prof. Leidy further remarked that Mr. Thomas Mechan had sub- 

 mitted to his examination some worms w^hich had been found in an 

 apple. They consisted of one entire individual and the anterior half 

 of a second, and apparently pertain to ^'ho.Mermis acuminata, a long 

 thread-worm which has been discovered infesting the larvae of many 

 insects. Among others, it is parasitic in the larva of the codling- 

 moth, or fruit-moth of the apple, which readily accounts for its pres- 

 ence in the fruit. Twenty-five years ago (Proc, 1850, 117) he de- 

 scribed a worm, belonging to the collection of the Academy, and 

 labeled as having been obtained from a child's mouth, which was 

 evidently the same species. It having been in the child's mouth is 

 probably to be explained by supposing that the child had eaten an 

 infected apple. 



The characters of the present specimens of the worm, both fe- 

 males, are as follows : Body filiform, pale fuscous, narrower ante- 

 riorly. Head conical , truncate, with the mouth simple and unarmed. 

 Caudal extremity thicker than the head, obtusely rounded, and fur- 

 nished with a minute spur-like proce.ss. Length 5 inches 8 lines; 



