463 



Marine Herrings, represented by a single species, the "Rough-backed 

 Sprat", HyperhpJius spratlellides, OgUby. 



Dr, Cox exhibited some fine living specimens of Terebratulina cancel- 

 lata, Koch, attached to a stone, which he had recently dredged off Forster, 

 Cape Hawke, a new habitat which he thought well worthy of record. Be- 

 sides the Brachiopods, Dr. Cox stated that he had also dredged the rare 

 Trigonia Strangely and he thought that the locality mentioned was the most 

 northern at which the rare shell had been taken. Dr. Cox also exhibited a 

 fine specimen of Myochama Wooclsi, Petterd, from the Derwent River, Tas- 

 mania. — Proftssor David contributed the following note ''On a remark- 

 able Radiolarian Rock" from Tamworth, N.S.W. : — "On September the iOth, 

 in company with Mr. D. S. Porter, I observed the occurrence of a remark- 

 able radiolarian rock on the Tamworth Temporary Common. Of this rock 

 a hand specimen and section prepared for the microscope are now exhibited. 

 The section is an opaque one prepared by cementing a slice of the rock 

 about one-tenth of an inch thick on to an ordinary glass slip with Canada 

 balsam and then etching its upper surface with dilute Hydrochloric Acid. 

 The rock being partially calcareous, probably an old radiolarian ooze, the 

 lime filling in the delicately latticed shells and interstices between the spines 

 of the Radiolaria is dissolved out, and the siliceous shells of the radiolaria 

 become exposed to view. Some of them are exquisitely preserved for 

 Palaeozoic Radiolaria. The rock of which they constitute by far the larger 

 proportion weathers into a brown pulverulent friable material like bath 

 brick. The unweathered portions are dark bluish-grey and compact. The 

 Radiolaria appear to be chiefly referable to the porulose division of the Legion 

 Spumellaria. This discovery confirms the previous determinations by me of 

 radiolarian casts in the rocks of the New England district, and of the Jeno- 

 lan Caves, N. S. Wales. The geological age of the formation in which this 

 rock occurs is probably either Devonian or Lower Carboniferous, as Lepi- 

 dodendron australe appears to occur on a horizon not far removed from that 

 of this radiolarian rock. The Moor Creek limestone, near Tamworth, I 

 find also contains numerous Radiolaria. I propose to offer a paper on this 

 subject at the next meeting of this Society." 



2. New York Academy of Sciences, Biological Section. 



October 12, 1896. — Dr. Blashford Dean and Mr. G.N. C alkins pre- 

 sented preliminary reports uponthe results attained at the Columbia University 

 Zoological Laboratory at Port Townsend, Washington. The expedition spent 

 about six weeks in exploring and collecting, and brought home large collections 

 from exceptionally favorable collecting grounds. Dr. Dean spent some time 

 at Monterey, Cal., and brought home collections of eggs and embryos of Chi- 

 maera and Bdellostoma. — Dr. J. L. Wortman made a preliminary report 

 upon the American Museum Expedition to the Puerco and Wasatch Beds. 

 He reported finding a connecting link between the close of the Cretaceous 

 and the beginning of the Tertiary. He gave an interesting account of the 

 massive ruins of the so-called cliff dwellers in the region visited by him. 

 In the Big Horn basin the expedition had remarkable success as well as in 

 the Wind River basin. — Prof. O shorn stated that with the collections 

 made this summer the American Museum could now announce that their 



