192 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 



the projecting points of the tubes ; but the worm 

 may be sensitive enough to know of the coming 

 storm, and avoid the danger by going deeper into 

 the sand. With the view of ascertaining if this habit 

 of the animal had been pi'eviously observed, I sub- 

 mitted specimens to Professor W. C. M'Intosh, St. 

 Andrews, who repHed tliat the fact had never come 

 under his notice, although he saw nothing inconsistent 

 in the worm going down into the sand head-foremost, 

 when the comb of golden bristles in front would be 

 useful in digging ; and that the species I had re- 

 ferred to Pectinaria belgica, Pallas, was Lagis Koreni, 

 Malagren. 



There can be no doubt that the observations by 

 Pallas, above referred to, were made with the animal 

 in confinement, and placed for examination in sand, 

 with the small end of the tube downward, under the 

 belief that such was its natural position. This shows 

 how readily we may be led to adopt erroneous 

 conclusions through preconceived ideas. 



Since the above was written, Professor M'Intosh 

 has kindly brought under my notice an article in the 

 Transactions of the Royal Society oj Edinburgh, Vol. 

 XXXIII., Part III., p. 656, where a correct statement 

 is made as to the animal burrowing in the sand with 

 the narrow end of the tube projecting above the 

 stu'face. 



Last winter, after a storm, I got a few more tubes 

 which had been thrown up on the beach ; and as these 

 contained the living animal, I had an opportunity 

 of studying its habits in confinement. When the 

 worm is obtained in its tube in good condition, and 

 laid flat on sand of sufficient depth to allow it to 

 go down as far as necessary, it begins in a short 

 time to burrow obliquely into the sand head-foremost, 

 getting more and more into a vertical position, and 

 generally leaving the narrow end of the tube, to 

 the extent of about half an inch, projecting above 

 the surface. Sometimes they go down till the apex 

 of the tube is level with the sand, and some of the 



