RANDOM NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



95 



minute punctures at regular distances ; each 

 whorl is flattened at the suture, which is 

 deep and channeled ; aperture narrow, two- 

 thirds the length of the body whorl ; outer 

 lip sharp and regularly curved ; inner lip 

 thickened, with a distinct fold on the colu- 

 mella ; umbilicus depressed, open in young 

 specimens. Length one-tenth, breadth 

 three-fortieths of an inch. 



It was first discovered by Prof. C. B. 

 Adams, in mud dredged in New Bedford 

 Harbor, and described by him in Journ. 

 Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., in., 323, 1840. Of 

 the twenty-two species of Tornatella, known 

 to us, our shell is the smallest yet found. 

 I have taken a few specimens alive in dredg- 

 ing, and find recently living shells washed 

 up on sandy shores, in shell sand and in 

 heaps of seaweed thrown up beyond ordi- 

 nary high tide. Inhabits from Cape Cod to 

 South Carolina. 



Family 64. C3'lichnidae, contains three 

 genera, all of which are represented in 

 Rhode Island. 



Genus Cylichna, Loven. 



This genus inhabits deep water generally, 

 and its distribution is world-wide. There 

 are forty species, two of which inhabit 

 Rhode Island. 



7L Cylichna alba, Brown. 



Syns. : 



Volvaria alba. Brown, 1827. 



Bulla triticea, Couth., 1838. 



Bulla corticata, Moll., 1842. 



Cylichna alba, Stimp., Dall., Tryon, etc. 



Shell cylindrical, solid, smooth, of a dull 

 white color, covered bj^ a thin, rusty epi- 

 dermis ; surface with minute revolving lines 

 and delicate lines of growth ; spire none ; 

 in place of it is a cii'cular pit, from the mar- 

 gin of which the lip takes its origin, rising 

 a little, then passingdownwards in a straight 

 line, forming a long, narrow aperture ; in- 

 ner lip curved at the base, making the 

 aperture at this point double its ordinary 

 width. Length one-third, breadth one-tenth 

 inch. Found in the maws of fishes caught 

 in Massachusetts Bay (Gould) ; Maine 

 (Mighels) ; Greenland (Morch) ; Great 

 Britain (Brown) ; from Block Island to 

 the Arctic Ocean ; northern coasts of 

 Europe ; northwest coast of America, south 



to Silka (Verrill). I have found one spec- 

 imen in Narragansett Bay. 



72. Cylichna oryza, Totten. 



Shell minute, white, glossy, largest in the 

 middle and tapering at each end ; spire de- 

 pressed to a shallow pit ; body whorl en- 

 veloping all the others ; surface smooth ; at 

 each end are a few microscopical revolving 

 lines ; aperture long and narrow, wider at 

 the base ; resembles the previous species 

 very much, except that it is shorter in pro- 

 portion to its breadth. Length one-fifth, 

 breadth one-tenth inch. It was first dis- 

 covered by Colonel Totten, in Newport 

 Harbor, and described by him in Silliman''s 

 Journal, xxviii., p. 350. Afterwards found 

 by Professor Adams in New Bedford Har- 

 bor in mud. Inhabits from Cape Cod to 

 South Carolina. Not uncommon in Green- 

 wich Bay at Apponaug in shell sand. 



Genus Utriculus, Brown. 

 73. Utriculus canaliculatus, Sat. 



Syns. : 



Volvaria canaliculatus, Say, 1826. 



BuUina canaliculata. Say, 1832. 



Bulla canaliculata, Gould and DeKay. 



Bulla obstricta, " " " 



Utriculus canaliculatus, Stimp., Dall. 



Shell cylindrical, white, shining, covered 

 with faint lines of growth ; spire a little 

 elevated, with a minute but prominent apex ; 

 whorls five, the summit of each having a 

 shallow rounded groove ; outer lip arching 

 forward ; inner lip enameled, with a small 

 tooth on fold near the base. Length one- 

 eighth, breadth one-tenth inch. Massachu- 

 setts Bay to South Carolina. We find it 

 in Rhode Island on sandy beaches. 



Another species. U. Gouldii, Couth., 

 inhabits from Massachusetts Bay to Grand 

 Man an. 



Genus Diaphana, Brown, 1833. 

 Syns. : 



Amphisphyra, Loven. 



74. Diaphana debilis, Gould. 



Shell small, obliquely-ovate, tumid, thin 

 and brittle, greenish white ; whorls four, all 

 terminating on a level ; body whorl the 



