439 



haben absolut nichts mit den Nothosauridae zu thun. Die palat- 

 odonten Pareiasauria und Placodontia sind beide so hoch specialisirt, 

 daß sie ohne Nachkommen aussterben, sie kommen also gar nicht in 

 Betracht. Mit ebenso großer Wahrscheinlichkeit können wir be- 

 haupten, daß die große Gruppe der Archosauria, welche die Crocodilia, 

 Dinosauria, Pterosauria und Aves enthält, von Rhynchocephalen ähn- 

 lichen Formen mit Gaumengebiß entstanden sind. 



Nachdruck verboten. 



Tue Kelation between Metazoan and Metaphytic Reproductive 



Processes. 



By Conway Mac Millan, 

 Professor of Botany, UnivM-sity of Minnesota, Minneapolis, U. S. A. 



The remarkable views of Beaed regarding the essential resem- 

 blance between metazoan and metaphytic reproductive processes, as 

 set forth in this journal ^) and elsewhere ^) should perhaps not be 

 allowed by botanists to go unchallenged. Zoologists will probably not 

 be prepared to accept all the statements made concerning their field 

 of work in the papers referred to, but lest they suppose that in some 

 way Dr. Beard is representing views current among plant morpho- 

 logists it would seem that some student of plant structure should enter 

 a disclaimer. The writer permits himself to assume the responsibility 

 of answer because the particular field is one that he has made a spe- 

 cial study for many years. 



The numerous incomprehensible statements made by Beard need 

 not be taken up in detail. I will note as examples one or two be- 

 fore considering the main contention of his papers. 



1) On page 241 of this journal he says "when conjugation be- 

 tween pairs of similar cells arose among the primitive Protozoa (or 

 Protophyta)" etc I am unable to understand this. For by definition, 

 as currently accepted, conjugation is quite unknown among proto- 

 phytes. If as some do, one includes the Mycetozoa or Bacillariaceae 

 among Protophyta it is always with the distinct reservation that their 

 characteristic cell fusions are not to be regarded as conjugation. The 



1) Anat. Anzeig., Bd. 11, p. 234—255, 1895. 



2) Annals of Botany, Vol. 9, p. 441-468, 1895. 



