122 The Microscope. 



shaped rim, clothed with vibratile cilia (cc), where motion generates 

 an inward current, which carries with it infusorians within the 

 expanded mouth funnel. At the bottom of the vestibule there is a 

 slit with two lips, the buccal orifice (Fig 1. bo), to which is attached 

 a tube that hangs into a chamber called the crop, (c), below which 

 is the maxillary process. The ovary is an oblong sac with spherical, 

 transparent germs (g), but when an egg is developed it is opaque, 

 and fills a large portion of the body cavity (e), and when ready for 

 expulsion the creature retires into its tube. The egg is at first forced 

 half out of the vent, the animal then moves slowly out of its tube 

 and comes to an erect position with its corona fully expanded. It 

 remains in this position, if undisturbed, for nearly an hour, and then 

 again retires into its tube to finish the operation of depositing the 

 egg. With some apparent exceptions the creature lays the egg well 

 down into its transparent gelatinous tube close to its foot. The foot 

 itself ( /) is long and flexible, and is capable of great expansion, and 

 very swift contraction, for on the least alarm the creature retreats 

 into its tube with lightning speed. A longitudinal muscle runs down 

 the whole length of the foot and is strengthened by numerous fine 

 muscular transverse rings from its junction with the trunk to its 

 extremity, where there is attached a short, non contractile peduncle 

 (Fig 1, c), which terminates in a disk which is fastened to a leaf 

 sphagnum, or other aquatic plant, by a viscous fluid secreted by a gland 

 at the extremity of the foot for the purpose. The respiratory or water- 

 vascular system in F. annulata is not easily traced, as its trunk is 

 rendered rather opaque by whitish granules that float in the fluid 

 between the outer and inner membranes. But when the creatui'e is 

 kept for two days in clear water without proper food, it 

 is so starved that it becomes very transparent, so that the details of 

 the internal organs can be traced with less difficulty. The slender 

 tortuous vessels can be observed leading down to the contracting 

 bladder, situated near the junction of the foot with the trunk (Fig 1, 

 c. b.). The F. annulata inhabits a transparent tube secreted by the 

 animal itself, which serves to protect the creature from its natural 

 enemies, and its eggs from the ravages of aquatic worms and larvae, 

 only a few of which can penetrate the tough tube. 



This floscule deposits from three to six female eggs in its tube, 

 and it requires five or six days for these to hatch. Six or eight 

 hours before the embryo bursts from its shell, two red eye- spots are 

 very conspicuous ; also a ciliaiy motion, and a twitching of the whole 

 contents of the egg, are observed. The twitching becomes yet more 



