MUSEUMS. 



49 



cataphractus) ; Common Frog * (Rana temporaria) and tadpoles : 

 Common Toad * (Bvfo vulgaris); Italian Toad * (Bufo vulgaris); Crested 

 or Great Water-Newt* (Triton cristatus) ; Common or Smooth Newt* 

 (Molge vulgaris); Spotted Salamander* (Salamandra maculosa); 

 American Salamander * (Amblystoma Carolina) ; Mexican Axolotl 

 (Axolotl tigrinum) ; Menopoma * (Cryptobranchus alleghaniensis) : 

 Young Horned Viper (Bitis nasicornis) ; West African Crocodile * 

 (Mecistops cataphractus) ; Egyptian Chameleon (C. basiliscus); Egyptian 

 Skink * (Scincus officinalis) ; Wall Gecko * (Tarentola annularis) ; 

 Spanish Ringed Snake ( Tropidonolus natrix, var., astreptophorus) ; young 

 African Python [Python sebce) ; Lesser Purple Gallinules (Porphyrwla 

 alleni) (transferred to J. Marsden Smedley, Matlock) ; young West 

 African Crested Eagle (Lophotriorchis lucaui) ; two young African 

 Genet Cats * ( Genetta senegalemis) ; West African Pouched Rat * 

 (Cricetomys gambianus) ; Young Drill * (Papio leucophmts) : Bosnian's 

 Potto ( Perodicticus potto) ; White-collared Mangabey *(Cercocebus collaris) ; 

 young Duikerbok from West Africa (transferred to J. Marsden Smedley, 

 Matlock). 



Important donations of West African specimens have been made from 

 time to time to the Museum Aquarium, by Messrs. A. Rid\ ard, Forman, 

 Stokes and others. Towards the end of the year additional warm-water 

 tanks had to be fixed to accommodate a number of tropical fishes pre- 

 sented by Mr. Ridyard, all the available tanks being full. There are 

 now seven different species of Tropical Fishes living in the Aquarium. 

 The attempt was successfully made in May last to induce one of the 

 Mud-fishes ( Protopterus annectens) to burrow into the mud and encase 

 itself in a capsule, as it does in its natural habitat during the dry season. 

 This was effected by gradually drawing off the water from the surface 

 of the clay (some of the original clay in which specimens in the dried 

 condition had been brought to England). It was hoped that observations 

 might be taken of its method of burrowing, if it could be induced to 

 make its hole near the glass wall of the tank. But this hope was not 

 realised, and nothing was seen of the fish from the time it entered the 

 mud in May to the time it was placed in water once more at the 

 beo-inning of December. The mud was then, and had been for the 

 greater part of the period, quite hard and dessicated. The fish seemed 

 none the worse, and is now quite healthy in one of the tanks. 



