84 PROCEEDINGS OF THE MA.LACOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



OX THE LAND-SHELLS OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 



By Edgar A. Smith, F.Z.S., etc. 



Read February mh, 1894. 



PLATE VII. Figs. 8-32. 



It is an axiom with concliologists that reports upon restricted 

 faunas with lists of the indigenous species are of great utility, 

 and interesting, not only to those persons who are located in the 

 particular region, but to others who may have collections from the 

 special districts treated of. 



The British Museum (Natural History) having received collections 

 from certain islands situated off the N.W. coast of Australia and from 

 various places on the mainland of W. Australia, the writer of the 

 following notes was induced to examine and report upon the land- 

 mollusca generally which inhabit this part of the world.' 



During the years 1890 and 1891 H.M.S. " Penguin" was engaged 

 in surveying operations off the north-west coast of Australia, and 

 one of the officers of the vessel, Mr. J. J. Walker, chief engineer, 

 devoted much of his spare time to collecting insects, shells, and other 

 objects of natural history. He is an exceptionally keen observer, 

 and obtained very large and important . collections of invertebrata 

 of all orders, especially insects. The British Museum (Natural 

 History) is greatly indebted to him for the energy he displayed, 

 and to Capt. W. U. Moore, in command of the vessel, for the 

 facilities ho afforded. 



Hitherto no land-shells had been collected at any of the islands 

 off the north-west of Australia, and therefore the specimens 

 obtained by Mr. Walker have a special interest, the majority being 

 new to science. Up to the present time only thirty-five- species 

 have been recorded, and it is therefore a great satisfaction to be 

 able now to add as many as eighteen to the list, bringing up the 

 total number of known species to fifty -three. 



The land-shells of Western Australia are not as remarkable for 



1 The report is limited to those species occurring west of long. 129 °E., the 

 boundary Hue between "West Australian and South Australian territory. Its extreme 

 length from north to south is 1,250 miles and 800 from east to west, and it embraces 

 an area of 1,060,000 square miles. 



2 Helix forrestiann, Angas, (P.Z.S. 1875, p. 389, pi. xlv. fig. 3) is not included 

 in this number, as the locality, N.W. Australia, is somewhat indefinite. 



