307 



of the United Stales is certainly much smaller than the Whoop- 

 ing Crane, I should be of the opinion that there are three distinct 

 species of Grus inhabiting this country. 



A letter written to Dr. Brewer by Mr. Thure Kumlien,of Wis- 

 consin, a well-informed ornithologist, strongly corroborates the 

 specific distinction of the Sandhill and Whooping Cranes. He 

 states that though the Grus Canadensis is common in that part of 

 the country, and that a pair of these birds have bred for six years 

 within sight of his house, he has never seen one which presented 

 any variation from the dark-colored plumage of what is called the 

 Sandhill Crane. This I consider the more remarkable, as I had 

 previously supposed that the Whooping Crane would be seen 

 there, at least, in its semiannual migration. 



The President gave an account, and presented to the 

 Society a very perfect Cast of Mystriosaurus, and pointed 

 out, in detail, its anatomical features. 



Dr. A. A. Gould announced to the Society the death of 

 one of its most distinguished Corresponding Members, Prof. 

 C. B. Adams of Amherst College, and offered the following 

 resolution, which was unanimously adopted : 



Resolved, That we learn, with much regret, the afflictive death 

 of one of our Associates, Prof. C. B. Adams, of Amherst College, 

 in whom Science has lost one of her most industrious and devoted 

 followers, whose collections and publications have already added 

 materially to our knowledge ; and in the prosecution of an ex- 

 tended plan of investigation which promised most important 

 results in regard to the laws of the geographical distribution of 

 animals on our globe. 



Dr. A. A.Gould presented a large nodule of flint in chalk, 

 in the name of Mr. Granville Mears, of Boston ; also a fossil 

 Echinoderm from the same specimen. 



Mr. H. R. Storer announced that Mr. J. A. A. Ribeiro 

 had recently discovered a new alkaloid in a Brazilian plant, 

 which he was now experimenting with to ascertain its medi- 

 cal properties. 



Mr. Henry K. Oliver, Jr., was elected a resident member 

 of the Society. 



