146 Field Naturalists' Chih — Proceedings. [vLT.^"xxx. 



been recorded in reports of Club excursions and elsewhere 

 under the name of Boeckella asymmetrica. It is the smallest 

 species of Boeckella but one, exceeding B. ininuta in length 

 by 15 mm. only. In quite a number of specimens of this 

 new species taken recently, the females were attacked with 

 a parasitic growth attached to the abdomen. This in no way 

 impeded their movements, nor did it seem to affect their 

 vitality. Specimens so afflicted, as well as normal individuals, 

 were exhibited under the microscope to illustrate the paper. 



2. By Professor Ewart, D.Sc, Ph.D., &c., entitled " Senses 

 of Plants," This took the form of a lecturette, illustrated by a 

 fine series of lantern slides, showing how plants adapted their 

 sensitivity and powers of response to their natural surroundings. 



Professor Ewart said the popular idea of plants was that they 

 were without powers of sensation or movement, whereas the 

 poet largely ascribes to plants human attributes. Neither of 

 these views were quite correct, the mean between both extremes 

 actually applies. A sense organ was simply a structure or 

 mechanism developed in order to enable an organism to perceive 

 particular classes of environment such as light, heat, contact, or 

 chemical substances. The sense of equilibrium was specially 

 developed in plants so that " they could adjust themselves in 

 accordance with their environs. The power of detecting light 

 rays in plants surpassed that of animals, as it was through 

 light that most plants directly obtained their food, and hence 

 light was more important to plants than animals. Plants had a 

 feeble kind of rudimentary intelligence, in a sense they had their 

 likes and dislikes and an elementary kind of memory was shown 

 by many. For instance, in regard to their night or sleeping 

 attitude, they could remember and continue to respond to 

 previous alterations of light and darkness. Thus under uniform 

 conditions of illumination or non-illumination they continued to 

 perform their ordinary sleep movements for a time. 



The chairman said that the Club was indebted to Professor 

 Ewart for his interesting lecturette. 



A discussion followed, in which Messrs. Gabriel, Hardy, and 

 Pitcher took part. 



NATURAL HISTORY NOTE. 



Mr. J. Gabriel, referring to a paper read some time ago by him 

 on Mutton-birds, mentioned that the explanation of the fact 

 that bones of Mutton-birds were sometimes found in large 

 numbers was due to the sand having suddenly drifted over the 

 nests, thereby smothering the nesting birds. A drift in 

 another direction some time later removed the sand and 

 exposed the bones. 



Messrs. Coghill and Rosenhain also spoke on the subject. 



