CLASSIFICATION. 589 



to whether the genus belongs to the Oribatidce. The 

 known species of this remarkable genus are only two, 

 one of which, I idea, is English. The creatures were 

 first made known to acarologists by Canestrini and 

 Fanzago in their ' Intorno agli Acari Italiani ' {1877) ; 

 the species described was not the British species, it 

 was called Nicoletia cornuta and was included amongst 

 the Gamasidm between the genera (slamasus and Sejus. 

 The description was short, and the figure did not enable 

 either Dr. Kramer, of Schleusingen, or myself to recog- 

 nise it ; this probably may have been because, it being 

 placed amongst the Gamasidce without any note of the 

 absence of the usual important Gamasid-characters, 

 such as the respiratory organs, &c., we imported these 

 family characters into the genus ; a note is added that 

 the species may possibly be the Acarus denticulatus of 

 Schrank and Linngeus. 



Hey den in 1828, in his classification referred to at 

 p. 32 of this book, instituted the genus Panoplia for 

 the Acarus denticulatus of Schrank, but without giving 

 any description or reasons, and apparently without any 

 acquaintance with the creature. 



In 1879 Dr. Kramer published a careful and well- 

 studied paper,* in which, not recognising Canestrini's 

 description, he treated the genus as new, and called it 

 ^^ Labidostoma.^^ His was the English species " /it- 

 teum.'' Dr. Kramer says that it is not one of the 

 Oribatidce, but does not say to what family it be- 

 longs. 



In 1880 1 published a short paper treating [inter alia) 

 of the immature stages of this creature. f In this 

 memoir I pointed out that the creature could not pro- 

 perly be included in any existing family, although it 

 came nearest to the Gamasidce. 



In 1882 Dr. Riccardo Canestrini, of Padua, published 



* "Neue Acariden," ' ArcLiv flir Naturg.,' xlv Jahrg., 1 Bd. 



t " On two Species of Acarinse believed not to have been before 

 recorded as British," ' Journal of the Qatkett Microscopical Club,' 

 vol. vi, p. 107. 



