﻿133 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Weir, 
  in 
  reply 
  to 
  an 
  observation 
  made 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  difficulty 
  of 
  a 
  toad's 
  climbing:, 
  

   stated 
  that 
  he 
  knew 
  an 
  instance 
  in 
  which 
  a 
  toad 
  had 
  climbed 
  up 
  an 
  open 
  door, 
  and 
  

   seated 
  himself 
  on 
  the 
  top. 
  

  

  2. 
  Oniscus 
  Armadillo. 
  — 
  " 
  Finding 
  this 
  milleped 
  extremely 
  injurious 
  to 
  ferns 
  and 
  

   Lycopodiums, 
  I 
  have 
  paid 
  some 
  little 
  attention 
  to 
  its 
  habits, 
  with 
  a 
  view 
  to 
  arresting 
  

   its 
  increase. 
  In 
  pursuing 
  this 
  object, 
  I 
  have 
  made 
  a 
  few 
  observations 
  that 
  appear 
  to 
  

   me 
  of 
  some 
  interest. 
  In 
  tlie 
  first 
  place, 
  the 
  female 
  is 
  strictly 
  viviparous, 
  and 
  the 
  young 
  

   are 
  perfectly 
  developed 
  while 
  slill 
  in 
  the 
  ovary 
  of 
  the 
  female 
  : 
  they 
  are 
  from 
  sixteen 
  to 
  

   twenty-two 
  in 
  number, 
  and 
  alter 
  birth 
  attach 
  themselves 
  to 
  the 
  legs 
  of 
  their 
  parent, 
  

   and 
  are 
  carried 
  about 
  by 
  her. 
  1 
  found 
  them 
  first 
  in 
  this 
  position 
  ; 
  afterwards 
  I 
  ob- 
  

   served 
  the 
  female 
  in 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  parturition; 
  and, 
  lastly, 
  I 
  killed 
  several 
  females 
  which 
  

   apjieared 
  gravid, 
  and 
  found 
  the 
  young 
  apparently 
  ready 
  for 
  extrusion.* 
  In 
  the 
  second 
  

   place 
  I 
  find 
  that 
  the 
  young-, 
  although 
  possessing 
  perfectly 
  developed 
  organs 
  of 
  locomo- 
  

   tion, 
  manducation, 
  kc, 
  have 
  not 
  the 
  configuration 
  of 
  the 
  adult: 
  the 
  second 
  segment 
  

   (? 
  cephalothorax) 
  being 
  pro[iortionately 
  larger, 
  and 
  bearing 
  the 
  eyes, 
  which 
  are 
  situ- 
  

   ated 
  near 
  its 
  exterior 
  margin. 
  Thirdli/, 
  the 
  similarity 
  of 
  these 
  minute 
  millepeds 
  

   to 
  the 
  extinct 
  trilobiles, 
  particularly 
  to 
  the 
  genus 
  Asaphus, 
  is 
  most 
  striking, 
  especially 
  

   in 
  the 
  figure 
  of 
  the 
  enlarged 
  second 
  segment, 
  and 
  the 
  position 
  of 
  the 
  eyes, 
  which 
  are 
  

   elongate, 
  linear, 
  very 
  distant, 
  and 
  have 
  a 
  reflexed 
  external 
  margin. 
  The 
  difference 
  

   between 
  the 
  infant 
  and 
  adult 
  Oniscus 
  Armadillo, 
  and 
  the 
  similarity 
  of 
  the 
  infant 
  O. 
  

   Armadillo 
  to 
  a 
  trilobite, 
  would 
  almost 
  induce 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  the 
  trilobiles 
  were 
  a 
  

   lower 
  form 
  of 
  Isopod 
  Crustacea, 
  rather 
  than 
  allies 
  of 
  Limulus 
  and 
  cognate 
  genera. 
  

   This 
  similarity 
  to 
  a 
  trilobite, 
  is 
  equally 
  apparent 
  whether 
  the 
  milleped 
  be 
  extended 
  or 
  

   rolled 
  into 
  a 
  ball." 
  

  

  3. 
  Ti/phlocyba 
  Filicum. 
  — 
  "I 
  beg 
  to 
  exhibit, 
  under 
  the 
  provisional 
  name 
  of 
  

   Typhlocyba 
  Filicum, 
  a 
  minute 
  Hemipterous 
  insect, 
  which 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  resembles 
  the 
  

   Typhlocyba 
  Ulmi 
  of 
  Gern)ar, 
  Walker, 
  and 
  other 
  entonudogists, 
  but 
  which 
  seems 
  to 
  

   me 
  to 
  be 
  specifically 
  distinct. 
  The 
  anterior 
  wings 
  are 
  bright 
  yellow 
  to 
  rather 
  below 
  

   the 
  middle, 
  the 
  apical 
  portion 
  transparent, 
  irrorated 
  with 
  black 
  ; 
  the 
  head 
  is 
  yellow- 
  

   green, 
  with 
  prominent 
  black 
  eyes; 
  the 
  prolhorax 
  is 
  also 
  yellow-green 
  ; 
  the 
  scutellum 
  

   is 
  an 
  equilateral 
  triangle, 
  and 
  yellowish 
  green 
  ; 
  tlie 
  abdomen 
  is 
  intensely 
  black, 
  with 
  

   the 
  extreme 
  margin 
  of 
  each 
  segment 
  yellow, 
  thus 
  giving 
  it 
  a 
  distinctly 
  annulated 
  

   appearance. 
  ]\ly 
  object 
  in 
  desiring 
  to 
  attract 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  the 
  Society 
  to 
  this 
  

   little 
  creature, 
  is 
  to 
  point 
  out 
  the 
  excessive 
  injury 
  which 
  it 
  commits 
  in 
  ferneries. 
  

   To 
  ferns 
  in 
  a 
  wild 
  state 
  it 
  is 
  highly 
  injurious, 
  often 
  changing 
  their 
  delicate 
  green 
  

   colour 
  to 
  a 
  sickly 
  yellow 
  or 
  whitey-brown 
  ; 
  but 
  its 
  introduction 
  into 
  a 
  glazed 
  house 
  in 
  

   which 
  ferns 
  are 
  cultivated, 
  is 
  quite 
  fatal 
  to 
  the 
  beauty 
  of 
  their 
  appearance. 
  It 
  inserts 
  

   its 
  short, 
  strong, 
  ami 
  acute 
  rostrum 
  into 
  the 
  parenchyma 
  of 
  the 
  frond, 
  and 
  remains 
  for 
  

   days 
  in 
  one 
  position, 
  apparently 
  engaged 
  during 
  the 
  whole 
  time 
  in 
  extracting 
  the 
  sap, 
  

   after 
  the 
  manner 
  of 
  an 
  Aphis. 
  The 
  result 
  of 
  this 
  abstraction 
  of 
  the 
  juices 
  of 
  the 
  plant 
  

   is 
  not, 
  as 
  in 
  llie 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  Aphis, 
  a 
  distortion 
  of 
  the 
  leaf, 
  but 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  whitish 
  

   or 
  yellowish 
  spots 
  or 
  blotches, 
  which 
  increase 
  in 
  number 
  and 
  size 
  until 
  the 
  entire 
  frond 
  

   is 
  permanently 
  although 
  not 
  uniformly 
  discoloured. 
  The 
  injury 
  is 
  committed 
  by 
  the 
  

  

  * 
  Some 
  of 
  these 
  were 
  exhibited. 
  

  

  