RANDOM NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



families, containing fift}- genera, and about 

 one hundred and fifty recent species, and as 

 man}' more fossil. The only shell repre- 

 sented in Rhode Island of this immense 

 order is 



Spikula Peronii, Lam. 

 Shell nacreous, cylindrical, conical, taper- 

 ing, the whorls separate from each other and 

 chambered. 



Although thousands of shells of these 

 pelagic moUusks arc washed ashore in all 

 parts of the world, the animal is almost un- 

 known, two perfect specimens only having 1 

 been found in New Zealand. Its habitat 

 is in the tropical Atlantic and Pacific oceans. ' 

 Specimens of the shells have been drifted 

 upon the island of Nantucket, which is the 

 nearest place to our state they have ever 

 been found, but they may as well be looked 

 for on Block Island or the ocean shores of ' 

 our state. 



Order 2. Tetrabranchiata. 



This order contains two families, Nau- 

 tilidse and Ammonitidie. 



Family 1. Nautilidre. Septa simply 

 curved, concave on the outer face, sutures 

 simple, undulate or lobed ; mouth simple ; 

 siphonal opening nearly central. Shell 

 smooth, or but little sculptured. Six living 

 and about six hundred fossil species. 



Family 2. Ammonitidte. Septa convex 

 in their median section, sutures complex, 

 lobed, ramified or denticulated ; septal tube 

 cylindrical and directed forwards ; siphuncle 

 cylindrical small, marginal. Fossil only, 

 about sixteen hundred species, varying in 

 size from less than an inch to over three 

 feet in diameter. 



Several of these enormous Ammonites 

 are represented by artificial models, lying 

 around on the shores of the Secondary 

 Island, so called, in the grounds of the 

 Crystal Palace, at Sydenham, Eng. On 

 this island, in the centre of an artificial 

 lake, it is intended to represent all the ex- 

 tinct animals of the Secondary Formation, 

 restored by means of models, built life-size, 

 and standing or lying in such positions as 

 to show to the best advantage their un- 

 couth and unwieldy forms. Among others 

 may be mentioned the Iguanodons (vege- 

 table feeding lizards), who, in their turn, 

 formed the prey of still larger carnivorous 

 animals. The great size of one of these 

 Iguanodons will be appreciated by the fact 



that on the last day of the year 1853, twent}'- 

 one scientific gentlemen dined inside its 

 body. Though not as large as some of 

 these extinct monsters, it contains six hun- 

 dred and fifty bushels of artificial stone, one 

 hundred feet of iron bars, and six hundred 

 bricks. 



[To he continued.'i 



Dynastes Here ales, one of the largest Bee- 

 tles in the World. 



This wonderful insect is, we learn by ref- 

 erence to the works of the Rev. J. G. Wood 

 and Mr. J. A. Ober, a native of Guiana, 

 and is never found out of South America, 

 except in the island of Dominica. It 

 burrows in the ground or under decaying 

 leaves, etc., during the day, and is strictly 

 nocturnal, flying high among the trees, 

 probably seeking mates. This tends to make 

 it diflflcult to obtain. The natives call 

 these beetles Razor-grinders, and it is 

 stated that they use their horns like a thumb 

 and finger clasping a small branch of a tree, 

 and by whirling rapidly around it, cut it off. 

 The males that we have examined have 

 measured from four to six and a half inches 

 in length, the thorax horns from two and 

 three-quarters to three and one-half inches 

 long. The elytra are sage green with 

 black spots and dashes, and black margins 

 around their whole circumference. The 

 thorax black and glossj', extended into the 

 long horn, which is thickly set below with 

 yellow-brown hairs ; scutel black, the under 

 parts very dark brown, with an abundance 

 of yellowish hairs; legs black and about one 

 and three-quarters inches long. Two small 

 protuberances near the base of the upper 

 horn, and upon the head a black horn one 

 and one quarter inches long, compressed, 

 toothed at the end, and at about half its 

 length two more short teeth. 



The female is about three inches long, the 

 elytra one and five-eighths inches long, and 

 one and one-half wide, dark brown tinged 

 with dull green, and somewhat spotted poste- 

 riori}^, three longitudinal ribs on each, and 

 roughly honeycombed. The head dull 

 black, with a rudimentary horn ; thorax 

 rusty black, and rugose, the rusty shade 

 occasioned by short brown hairs ; all the 

 under parts dark brown or black, and very 

 closely punctured. The larva lives in, and 

 feeds upon, rotten tree trunks and branches. 



