88 Excursion In Alf^Jn'ni^ton . [voKXXxi 



sausage-shaped, gelatinous masses, in which the eggs were 

 embedded in a spiral, end to end, round the outer edge. One 

 of these egg masses is exhibited on the table to-night. A number 

 of the eggs have hatched, and in the water is a swarming, 

 wrigghng mass of tiny larvae. The Ceratopogon and Chiron- 

 onous gnats also lay eggs in gelatinous masses — the former in 

 irregular form, the latter in small globular masses, the eggs 

 radiating from the centre. The tube-building rotifer Melicerta 

 ringens was seen in numbers on the Myriophyllum, and two 

 interesting species of Cladocera were noted — one, Scapholeberis 

 kingi, a form described by King in 1851 as Daphnia mucronata ; 

 the other also described by King as Moina lemncp, though he 

 had some doubt as to the genus. This species had escaped 

 the notice of naturalists since King's time until some two years 

 ago I obtained a number of them at Caulfield. These I sent 

 to Prof. G. O. Sars, who re-described the species and placed it 

 in a new genus amongst the MacrothrixidcC. naming it Pseudo- 

 m Hna lemnce. 



The following is a list of the principal species noted : — 

 Protozoa — Spirostoma, Vorticella, Epistyhs ; Volvox ; Coelen- 

 terata — Hydra oligactis ; Turbellaria — Mesostomum tetra- 

 gonuim ; Planarians : Rotifera — Melicerta ringens, R. vulgaris. 

 Asjilanchna ; Cladocera — Daphnia carinata, Siniocephalus aus- 

 tralis, Ceriodaphnis, sp., Pseudomoina lemnae, Scapholeberis 

 kingi, Bosmina, sp., Chydorus, Pleuroxis ; Copepoda — Boeckella 

 oblonga, B. symmetrica, B. saycei, B. pseudochelse, B. asym- 

 metrica, Brunella longicornis, Cyclops leuckarti, C. australis, 

 C. albidus ; Amphipoda — Chiltonia subtenuis ; Caridia — 

 Xiphocaris compressa (?). — J. Searle. 



" Proteus was one of the ancient Greek gods, a son of 

 Neptune, the old sea god, who had the power of changing his 

 shape at will, and in suggestion of the great diversity of its 

 species, the genus Protea and the order Proteaceae were named 

 after him. The order Proteaceae contains many i)lants so 

 apparently different that it is hard for the novice to believe 

 that such plants, presenting so many ajiparently differing forms, 

 should belong to the same order. Although the flowers of the 

 different genera are very different in appearance, one outstand- 

 ing feature is prominent, and that is the hard, leathery texture 

 of the mature foliage of almost every species. It would seem as 

 if nature had so allowed these plants to gradually acquire the 

 hardened foliage that they might adapt themselves to hard, hot, 

 and dry climates and soil conditions, and so to sustain life 

 under the most trying circumstances." — From "The Native 

 Flowers of Victoria," by E. E. Pescott, F.L.S. 



