20 Proceedings. 



African fishes were mentioned, and the peculiar habits of Asjntdo and other cat- 

 fishes, of the pipefishes and sea-horses, and the parasitical methods of the bitterling, 

 were detailed. The remarkable bubble nests of the rainbow-fish and fighting-fish 

 were described, and illustrated by photographs taken by the lecturer. 



Some popuJar errors were indicated, including the widely advertised habit 

 accredited to the Sargasso fish (Pterophryne), which was supposed to make the 

 "nest" found in the gulf-weed. It has been known for some time that the eggs 

 are those of a flying-fish, which by means of their filaments hold the fronds of 

 weed into a nestlike mass, but the old story still nppears in quite recent fish 

 literature. It was explained that the Sargasso fish really lays its eggs at the 

 surface, and that they form an immense raft, like those of other members of the 

 same family. 



Second Mbet[Ng : 1st June. fUlO. 



Present: Mi. W . M. Laing (President), in the cliair, and seventy-five 

 others. 



Obituary. — Resolutions of regret at the death of Dr. Hocken, Pro- 

 fessor C. H. H. Cook, and Mr. G. W. Kirkaldy, of Honolulu, were carried. 



New Memhers. — Miss Gertrude M. BuUen, Miss Hall, Dr. J. Guthrie, 

 sen., and Messrs. T. Hughes and II. King were elected members. 



Papers. — 1. "" Some Ilyiltdids from the Kerrnadec Islands.'" bv F. W. 

 Hilgendorf, M.A.. D.Sc. 



Abstract. 



The hydroids were collected by Mr. W. R. B. Oliver in 1908, and all came 

 from Sunday Island. They are all calyptoblasts, and are in most cases only 

 skeletons. Nine species are represented in the collection, and of these one is also 

 found in Australia and Europe ; one in New Zealand, Australia, and Europe ; one 

 in New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa; one in New Zealand and Australia : 

 three are also found in New Zealand ; and two are probably not found elsewhere. 



This list indicates the close relationship of the hydroid fauna with that of 

 New Zealand, and this relationship is explained by the fact that hydroid-covered 

 seaweeds are probably carried northwards from New Zealand, as are the kauri 

 logs found cast ashore on Sunday Island. The two species not identified as having 

 been previously recorded probably belong to the genus Ag/aophenia, though in the 

 absence of the reproductive structures they could not be determined. They are, 

 however, described and figured. One of the species identified [AgJaoj)henia laxa) 

 has apparently not been recorded since Allman found it in New Zealand thirty-six 

 years ago. He did not find the Corbulnc : these were present in the Kermadec 

 specimens, and are described and figured. 



2. " Notes on Reptiles and Manunals Irom tlie Kerrnadec Islands,'' 

 by W. R. B. Oliver. 



Abstract. 



The capture of a specimen of green turtle on Sunday Island is recorded. Some 

 account is given of the habits of the humpback whales, which regularly visit the 

 group, and of the Pacific rat, with special reference to the possible means by which 

 the latter species may have reached the Kerniadecs, evidence being adduced to 

 show that Sunday Island was once inhabited by natives. Some notes on goats and 

 cats recently introduced into the Kerrnadec Islands by man follow, and special 

 attention is drawn to the fact that the cats prey chiefly on mutton-birds and terns, 

 the former bird forming an important article of food for the inhabitants. 



3. " Glacial Phenomena of the Upper Rakaia and Ashburton Valleys,"' 

 by R. Speight, M.A., M.Sc, F.G.S.^ 



The author exhibited a series of lantern-slides dealing with the locality and 

 illustrating the effect of glaciation on the landscape. Attention was drawn to the 

 fact that the Southern Alps in their present form are not a true mountain-range, but 



