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XVI. On the external Anatomy and Natural History of the Genua of Annelida named 

 Palolo by the Samoans and Tonguese, and Mbalolo by the Fijians. By John Denis 

 Macdonald, Assistant-Surgeon of R.II.S. 'Herald,' employed on Surveying Service 

 in the South-western Facific, under the Command of Captain H. M. Denham, R.N., 

 F.E.S. Commtmicated by G. Busk, F.B.S., F.L.S. 



Read December 3id, 1857. 



l_/N the examination of specimens of a remarkable Annelidan, obtained at the Navigator 

 Islands (Samoa), and presented to the British Museum by the Rev. J. B. Stair, Dr. Gray 

 founded a new genus, Avhich he called Falolo, adopting the native name of the animal. 

 It is thus characterized : — 



" Body cylindrical separated into equal joints, each joint with a small tuft of three or 

 four spicula on the middle of each side. Head ? Last joiat ending in a couple of ten- 

 tacles. Eggs globular. 



" Falolo viridis, n. sp. Green, with a row of round black spots down the middle of the 

 dorsal? sui'face; one spot on the middle of each joint. — Habitat. Navigator's Islands." 



Dr. Gray found his specimens so mutilated, that he could not detect a single head 

 amongst all the broken pieces; and consequently this essential part remained without 

 description. He seems to refer his want of success in this respect to mere casualty. It 

 is very remarkable, however, that we at first experienced the same difficulty, and only 

 obtained a single head, though we carefully examined considerable numbers of this 

 species in the Eiji Group, where it makes its short annual appearance at a period which 

 the natives predict with unerring precision by observing the phases of the moon, as at 

 Samoa. The comparison of specimens from both these localities proves them to be speci- 

 fically identical; moreover, the Fijian name for the animal is Mbalolo, Mb in that 

 language being substituted for the Samoan F. 



The great antiquity of this name is attested by the fact,, that the parts of the year 

 nearly corresponding with oiu* months of October and November are respectively named 

 Mbalolo lailai (little), and Mbalolo lecu (large). The latter, as its name iuipUes, is 

 distinguished by the appearance of the Mbalolo in such vast numbers, that it is collected 

 by the natives as a dainty article of food, and is so much prized that formal presents of 

 it are often sent considerable distances, from certain chiefs, to others M'hose small domi- 

 nions do not happen to be visited by the 3Ibalolo. Tlie Fijians entertain superstitious 

 ideas connected with it; but further notice of these would be foreign to our present 

 purpose. 



Reverting to the separation or absence of the anterior extremity of the Mbalolo (as 

 fii'st noticed by Dr. Gray, and subseqiicntly by us, in the specimens including different 

 species) at the regular period of visitation, this fact is too remarkable to depend upon 



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