RANDOM NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



while the apex is more pointed than in S. 

 Stinipsoni. Length, fifteen to twenty mill. 

 Connecticut to Newfoundland. 



Genus Fulgur, Montfort. 



Shell peav-shaped, thin ; spire short, the 

 angle of shoulder spinous ; bod3--whorl ver}' 

 large ; canal long and twisted ; lip and col- 

 umella smooth. Operculum ovate, nucleus 

 apical. 



7. FtlLGUR CAKICA, GmELIN. 



Syns. : 



Murex carica, Gme. 

 Pyrula carica, Gould. De Kay. 

 Fulgur carica. Gill. Dall. Tryon, etc. 

 Dist. Atlantic coast from Cape Cod to 

 Florida. 



Shell large, solid, pear-shaped, cinerous ; 

 spire a low, pointed cone ; suture well-de- 

 fined but not channeled ; whorls six, bod}'- 

 whorl large, crowned with a series of trian- 

 gular nodules, or spines, one at each stage 

 of growth ; aperture large, long, ovate ; 

 outer lip simple and sharp ; inner lip cal- 

 lused and twisted ; canal long and flexu- 

 ose ; interior of aperture brick red, or a 

 light fawn color. Operculum ovate, thick, 

 with a broad callus around the inner edge ; 

 outer surface of operculum rough and coarse, 

 color, greenish yellow ; inner surface of a 

 waxen texture. 



This is the largest shell found in Rhode 

 Island. Its size is seven inches in length bj' 

 four in breadth. It belongs to the south- 

 ern portion of the Atlantic Province, and is 

 found on the coasts of the Southern States, 

 of larger size and more brilliant color than 

 those found here. It is not found north of 

 Cape Cod. Its proper habitat is in the 

 Laminarian Zone, but is sometimes found 

 on sandy shores between tides. 



The animal lays its eggs in March and 

 April. The eggs of marine Gasteropods 

 are called ova cases. In this species they 

 consist of a series of membranous cases, 

 from fifty to seventy in number, about the 

 size and thickness of an old-fashioned cop- 

 per cent ; these are fastened together by a 

 string or cord of the same substance, at- 

 tached to their upper edges ; they are placed 

 about one-fourth of an inch apart, those 

 cases forming the centre of the string being 

 the largest ; from the centre to each end 



they taper gradually in size, forming a string 

 of cases a yard in length ; each case has 

 eleven ribs radiating from the point of at- 

 tachment, and scalloping the edges, which 

 are beveled nearly to a point ; opposite the 

 ligament is a small opening through which 

 the3-oung escape when sufliciently matured ; 

 each case contains forty or fifty embryos, 

 which when ready to escape from their im- 

 prisonment are about one-sixtl-i of an inch 

 in length. 



The animal is large, dirty white to almost 

 black ; mantle thick, white, edge plain, pro- 

 boscis long, cylindrical ; tentacles short, tri- 

 angular ; eyes on the outer side, near the 

 base. Carnivorous in its habits, and is found 

 more abundantly near oyster-beds, where it 

 commits great ravages. 



{To be continued.) 



Curious Monstrosities. — We recently 

 had a lamb to mount, which had one head 

 and two bodies joined together on the chest, 

 so that when standing, the legs on the 

 body which joined beneath pointed up- 

 wards. It had eight legs, four ears, and 

 but one eye, which was large and situated 

 in the centre of the forehead. A corre- 

 spondent now writes he has a pig that is a 

 doublet, but differs from our sheep in hav- 

 ing three e^es. We have had in our pos- 

 session during the past six years three four- 

 I legged chickens, gotten up on two different 

 patterns. 



The Walker prize of the Boston Society 

 of Natural History has been this year 

 awarded to Mr. Albert II. Tuttle, of" the 

 Harvard Medical School, Boston. His 

 subject was the embryology of Lunatia 

 Jieros, thoroughly illustrated. 



A SCIENTIST says : " The paleozoic cock- 

 roaches are distinguished from living species 

 by having five veins in the wing instead of 

 four, and have a decided mesozoic aspect." 

 This is highly important; but a woman 

 when she sees one of these insects, will not 

 care whether it has five or fifteen veins in 

 the wings. She will give a scream, draw 

 her skirts tightly about her, and give the 

 bug such a rap with an old shoe, that it 

 will have more of a mashed than a mesozoic 

 aspect. — Norristown Herald. 



