72 



III. Mittheilungen aus Instituten, Gesellschaften etc. 



1. Zoological Society of London. 



4th January, 1881. — Mr. Sclater exhibited and made remarks on 

 a skin of the Southern Merganser [Mergus australis) , from the Auckland Is- 

 lands belonging to the collection of Baron Anatole von Hügel. — Professor 

 A. Newton, M.A., F. R. S., exhibited on behalf of Professor Alphonse 

 Milne-Edwards, F.M.Z.S., an egg of Cariama cristata, laid last summer in 

 the Jardin des Plantes, and possibly the first ever seen of which the paren- 

 tage was certainly known, though an egg, also exhibited by Professor New- 

 ton, had been for many years in the collection of Mr. H. F. Walter. — 

 Dr. Albert Günther, F. E,. S., read an account of the zoological collections 

 made by Dr. R. W. Coppinger, R.N., during the survey of H. M.S. , Alert' 

 in the Straits of Magellan, and on the coast of Patagonia, and called atten- 

 tion to the most remarkable species represented in the various groups, which 

 had been worked out by himself and his assistants in the Zoological Depart- 

 ment of the British Museum. Dr. Günther also called attention to several 

 interesting cases of the similarity of forms in these collections to known 

 forms of the Arctic Regions and of the Australian Seas. — A communica- 

 tion was read from Professor J. O. Westwood, containing the descrip- 

 tions of some new exotic species of Moths of the genera Castnea and Saturnia. 

 — A second paper by Professor Westwood contained observations on two 

 Indian Butterflies, — ■ Papilio castor and P. pollnx. — Professor W. H. 

 Flower, F.R.S., described the skull of a very large Elephant Seal [Macro- 

 rhinus leoninus) , lately received in the Museum of the College of Surgeons 

 from the Falkland Islands, and discussed the questions of affinities and syste- 

 matic position of this animal among the Pinnipeds. Professor Flower arrived 

 at the conclusion from an examination of its dental, cranial, and limb cha- 

 racters, and from some other points in its anatomy, that the Elephant Seal 

 is the member of the group the farthest removed from the teiTestrial carni- 

 vora and showing most cetacean analogies. He also considered that at pre- 

 sent there is no evidence of the existence of more than one species of the 

 genus. — Dr. A. Günther read some notes on the species of Insectivorous 

 Mammals belonging to the genus Wiyncliocyon and Petrodromus, and described 

 two new species of the former genus , proposed to be called R. macrurus 

 (from the Rovuma river) , and R. chrysopygus (from the Mombaça river) . — 

 P. L. Sclater, Secretary. 



2. Notiz. 



Aus dem New Britannia Archipel ist dem Museum Godeffroy neuer- 

 dings eine inhaltreiche Sendung des Reisenden ïh. Kleinschmidt zu- 

 gegangen, aus der sich interessante Doubletten an Säugethieren, Vögeln und 

 Eiern, Reptilien, Amphibien und Insecten ergeben werden. 



Hamburg, 24. Januar 1881. J. D. E. S c hmeltz , 



Gustos am Museum Godefi"roy. 



Druck von Breitkopf und Härtel in Leipzig. 



