84 



RANDOM NOTB3 ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



■a. family differing from tliose liithorto treated 

 in several structural peculiarities, though 

 externally indistinguishable from the Ple- 

 THODONTiD.E, with vvhich the3" have been 

 often confounded. 



Desmognathus fascas is perhaps the most 

 abundant of North American forms. It is 

 over three inches in length ; has four- 

 teen costal folds ; a long tail equaling the 

 animal in length, and keeled along its up- 

 per part. It is brown above with gra}' and 

 pink shades, the latter being muchmore ap- 

 parent in the young than in the adult an- 

 imal. The flanks and belly are marbled, 

 pale shades predominating. The animals 

 enjoy most the shallow and rapitl waters of 

 mountain rivulets. In places under every 

 stone an adult animal or its larva is found 

 to take concealment, from which it darts 

 forth on being disturbed, rapidly swimming 

 from rock to rock evidently quite dissatisfied 

 with all. 



A most interesting fact in connection 

 with this animal must not be omitted : Pro- 

 fessor Baird has noticed that the eggs are 

 wrapped in a long string around the body 

 of the female, who now seeks a damp situa- 

 tion where she remains until all are hatched. 

 This method was for a long time supposed 

 to be onl}- characteristic of the so-called 

 Ah/tes, an anurous Batrachian of P^urope. 



Before closing with this list I feel it m_y 

 dutj' to thank those who have assisted me 

 by giving facts or in making more complete 

 the collection in the museum of Brown 

 University. This now, especially through 

 the courtesy of Professor Baird, contains 

 tvpes of all the forms which I have here 

 mentioned and will be, I trust, of much help 

 to those who may interest themselves in 

 this branch. 



Anemones. 



was very striking from quantity. While 

 looking to see if the scrpula confined its 

 work to the shells, or if the stones were like- 

 wise attacked, I saw suddenly blooming 

 beneath me in a hollow of the wharf under 

 water, four sea anemones {Mytrklium mar- 

 ginatum ) . They were fixed upon one stone, 

 and varied in size from a dime to a half dol- 

 lar at theii' point of attachment. This is my 

 impression as to their size ; I had no means 

 of measurement. By some cautious move- 

 ment of stones near by, I found two or three 

 others, and making signals to friends in a 

 boat at hand, we were able by use of the 

 boat to make farther search, and soon 

 came upon two more, one much larger than 

 either of the first found. 



We moved three small stones to a cove 

 opening out of Bristol Harbor, hoping that 

 the conditions of their new surroundings 

 will be favorable to the increase of this 

 beautiful creature, and left undisturbed in 

 their original home a sufficient number to 

 ensure their continuance in that place. 



H. M. K. Brownkll. 



While on Chesawannoc or Hog Island, 

 on the twent^'-ninth da}' of September, 

 I climbed down the broken away part 

 of the old wharf, on the east side of 

 the island, for the purpose of observing 

 the Littorina littoria, which were cov- 

 ered wath serpula to an extent I had 

 never seen. I do not think a single 

 shell among hundreds were free from these 

 white threads, and the effect both under 

 water and up and down the sides of the 

 wharf, where the Littorina had climbed, 



Abnormal Embryos. 



In Science Observer, No. 49, Prof. 

 Samuel Garman discusses at some length 

 the occurrence of twins and triplets among 

 the young of the trout and salmon, under 

 culture in hatcheries. In the discussion of 

 the subject some twenty-four examples 

 have been selected, which, drawn by Mr. 

 S. F. Denton, serve to illustrate the princi- 

 pal abnormal peculiarities. The conclusions 

 at vvhich Professor Garman arrives seem 

 logical, and have already attracted consider- 

 able attention among those who are inter- 

 ested in embryology. 



Professor Garman says : '-In the absence 

 of exact data for comparison, in regard to 

 relative abundance, frequency of occurrence, 

 etc., it only remains to offer a few conject- 

 ures as to the cause and manner of origin 

 of these monstrosities. 



" Were w-e to adopt for these cases the 

 general conclusion that one sfiormatozoon 

 only is concerned in the fertilization of 

 each egg, we should be driven to conclude 

 that the embryo has, by more or less com- 

 plete division, split up to form the monster 

 or the group. And we can not claim that 

 the freak results from fusion without admit- 



