247 



female fertile flowers. Besides these there occurs a set of flowers originally 

 named by himself «Insect-att acked-female s«, but for which he has 

 adopted Coimt Solms-Laubach's term »Gall Flowers«. (Bot. Zeit. 1SS5.) 

 The latter botanist having anticipated him in publication, though King's re- 

 searches had commenced earlier. As to the question of these Gall-Flowers 

 Dr. King states that the pupa of an insect can usually be seen through the 

 coats of the ovary. The pupa when perfected escapes into the cavity of the 

 receptacle by cutting its way through, and fully developed winged insects 

 are often to be found in considerable numbers in the cavity of the fig. The 

 pupa of the insect must become encysted in the ovary of the gall-flower at 

 a very early period, for about the time at which the imago is escaping from 

 the ovary the pollen of the anthers of the male flower is only beginning to 

 shed. Thus Dr. King holds that through the interposition of insects the 

 malformed female flowers doubtless become functionally important in the 

 life history of the fig trees. — J. M urie. 



5. Linnean Society of New South Wales. 



26*^ January, 1887. — 1) On an undescribed Z)?</es from New Guinea. 

 By E. P. Kam say, L.L.D., and J. Douglas-Ogilby. Three specimens of 

 the new species, which is named D. niiens, were obtained on the S.E. coast 

 of New Guinea, by Mr. Cairns. — 2) Botanical. — 3) Catalogue of the 

 described Coleoptera of Australia. By George Masters. Part VII. This Part 

 completes Mr. Masters's Catalogue of the Coleoptera of Australia. It includes 

 the Families Fhytophacjidce, Erotylidœ, Endomychidœ and Coccinellidœ, and 

 contains a record of 997 species, bringing the total record up to 7230 species. 



— 4) Notes on some Trilobites new to Australia. By F. Ratte, M.E. The 

 author makes some remarks on his species Lichas sinuata which lie thinks 

 may be looked upon as a variety of Lichas palmata, Barr. (= L. hirsuta, 

 Fletch.); and figures some Trilobites belonging to the genera Acidaspis and 

 Staurocephalns from Bow^ning, some of them probably new species. — 5) On 

 the mode of Nidification of Pachycephala Gilbertii. By K. H. Bennett. 

 Mr. Bennett records the finding on the 24th of October last at Hilfern 

 Station, West of the Darling Hiver, of a specimen of this bird, sitting on 

 three eggs in the old nest of a Pomatoslomus. The eggs and nest are now in 

 the Australian Museum. — 6) Botanical. — Mr. Smit hurst exhibited the 

 ulna, radius and other bones of a gigantic Kangaroo from a deep deposit at 

 Gulgong. Also, two specimens of Corals also from Gulgong; one, Favosites 

 Gothlandica, the other, a species of Isastrœa evidently foreign to the district. 



— Mr. Ogilby exhibited a coloured drawing by Mr. Irwin, of the beauti- 

 ful fish Girella cyanea. — Mr. A. Sidney Oil iff exhibited a gigantic flea 

 which he identified as Pulex echidnœ^ Denny. The specimen was found by 

 Mr. Pedi e y on the Australian Echidna together with the small species 

 recently described in the 'Proceedings' as Echidnophaga amhulans. — 

 Mr. McCooey contributed two notes on the burrowing habits of Chelodina 

 loiigicollis, describing the mode in which the female carries water to soften 

 the hard soil which she chooses as the spot for her nidification. — 

 Mr. Masters exhibited a fine collection of Entomogenous Fungi and read 

 the following explanatory note: — ))I have put together in the drawer I now 

 exhibit some of the most conspicuous Entomogenous Fungi in the Macleay- 



