MOLL use A OF INDIA. 71 



characters. The greater number recorded are from the islands of 

 the Malay Archipelago, which, being beyond the limits of my work, 

 I shall not at present refer to, confining myself in the following 

 lists to those found within the Indian area and the Malay Peninsula 

 down to Penang and Singapur. 



In the first list, by Albers, the only Indian species is lahiata, 

 Pfr., from the N.W, Himalaya, which in the 2nd edition by Ed. yon 

 Martens is transferred to Xesta ; at the same time, five other Indian 

 species are included in Hemvplecta, viz. \—H. cycloplax and H. 

 orohla, which I have shown in Part IV. pp. 125 & 129, belong to 

 Oxytes ; there is tlwodori, Phil., from Mergui, which is probably a 

 MacroMamys, from its resemblance in form to M. decussata ■ lastly, 

 H. gardneri, Pfr., and cJumui, Pfr., from Ceylon, both of which I 

 have no doubt are quite distinct from the type of the genus and its 

 allies inhabiting the Malay Peninsula and the great islands. Adams 

 placed in it ligtdata, semirur/ata, and tranquehanca. Nevill re- 

 stricted it entirely to the Indian, Burmese, and Malay Peninsula 

 areas, including in it only 16 species. Theobald adopted this 

 generic title for a large number of species (34), with forms so 

 varied that he had to subdivide it into 5 sections, noting the 

 typical species in each. Still later, Clessin, editing L. PfeiflFer's 

 work, raises the total number of species under this genus to 104, 

 35 being Indian, dividing them into 3 groups after the form of the 

 shell ; the species are of the most varied character and must 

 represent several distinct genera. This shows how arbitrary has 

 been the classification of the Indian Pulmonifera, and the necessity 

 for generic appellations to be dependent on something more than 

 one external character. W. T. Blanford, J. A. S. B. 1880, pp. 187, 

 188, has added two species to the genus in H. triostoma and enisa, 

 both from Travancore. 



On pp. 72-73 is a list of all the Indian species that have been 

 placed in this genus by different authors, showing the genera to 

 w^hich they have been since transferred or may more accurately be 

 placed in, those still doubtful being indicated by a query. 



Tryon includes a large number of species from the Malay Archi- 

 pelago &c. in this genus. It is a useful genus for many distinct 

 and distantly related animals. On turning to his plates, several 

 species in the text under Hemiplecta are found under Rhysota, so 

 that it is somewhat doubtful how to accept their position. There 

 is a wide field of work here waiting to be done. 



Owing to the courtesy of Messrs. Little & Co., of Singapur, to 

 whom I wrote for specimens in spirit of Albers's type species. 

 Helix Immphreysiana, I am now enabled to describe the animal 

 and give the genus a defined position among these Indian forms. 

 I may say at once that, taking all the characters combined, there 

 is no form I have yet seen from India like it. In the mantle 

 there is some similarity with Macrochlamys ; in the odontophore 

 more with AriojjJianta and Oxytes, yet sufiiciently defined to be most 

 distinctive. 



