224 PROCEKDINGS OF THE MALACOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



has little relationship with the N'ew Zealand Tiisoid' shells, and' 

 Sip]to)ialia cannot be used for the latter. 



Tryon (Man. Conch., vol. iii, p. 185, pi. liv, fij;. 355, 1881) 

 described an Australian shell as Siphonalia maxima. This was 

 transferred to Megalatractiis by Kesteven (Mem. Austr. Mus., vol. iv, 

 pp. 419 et seq., 1904), but «S'//?/?ow«//rt! wm.j;mrt is absolutely congeneric 

 with S. dilatata, Quoy & Gaimard, and these should not be classed 

 with Megalatractm. I will give full details con firming this conclusion 

 in anotbi>r place. 



Ivobelt introduced ^?<s^ro/«.s7/s (Kiister's Conch. Cab., 1881, p. 127) 

 for a number of Fusoid shells, including the Austro-Neozelanic 

 ' S/phottalia', but Eischer in the lifanud de Conch., 1884, p. 625, 

 cited as example of Austrofnsus (which he made a sub-genus of 

 Siphonal/a), S. aUeniata, Philippi, which was the second of Kobelt's 

 list, the Hrst being indeterminaVde. At the same time Fischer 

 jtroposed Penion for Siphonalia dilatata, Quoy & Gaimaid. I would 

 therefore fix S. aUernata, I'hilippi, as type of Austrofu.ms, and this 

 leaves P^?i/o;< to be used for tlie Austro-Neozelanic forms, and I would 

 here unhesitatingly place 8iplionalia maxima, Tryon. 



Bembicium, Philippi. 



This name must be used for the genus of Australian molluscs known 

 by the name of Risella. One species was for some time included in 

 the New Zealand List, but was expunged by Suter (Trans. New 

 Zeal. Inst., vol. xxxviii, p. 325, 1905 (1906)), who, however, 

 concluded it must still be retained as occurring in the Pliocene iu 

 New Zealand. 



Risella has been generally quoted as of Gray, 1840, but that 

 reference is to the Synops. Brit. Mus., where it only occurs as a nude 

 name. The earliest introdmtion legitimately made by Gray appears 

 to be in the Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1847, p. 150, where we read: 

 ^'Risella, Gray, 1840, 1844. Ikmlicixim, Philippi, 1846. Trochus 

 melanostomus.^'' 



The 1844 reference to Gray seems to be only another case of Synops. 

 Brit. !Mus., so that Bcmhicium, Philippi, 1846, has clearly priority 

 over Risella, Gray, 1847. In the Zeitschr. fiir Malak., September, 

 1846, p. 129, Philippi introduced this genus and monographed the 

 species. Herrmannsen {Ind. Gen. Malac, vol. i, p. Ill, 1846) 

 designated as type of Bembicium, Trochus vielannstomus, so that Risella, 

 Gray, becomes an absolute synonym. In his vol. ii, 1847. Herrmannsen 

 included Risella as a name in the Synops. Brit. Mus., which he had not 

 seen, and in his Supplement, p 119, 1852, included it as published 

 in the Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1847, p. 150. 



This correction has escaped the attention of Australian workers for 

 two reasons : first, the inaccessibility of literature compels acceptance 

 of many quotations without op])ortunity of verification, and the 

 constant citation of Gray, Synops. Brit. ^lus., 1840, by better 

 situated workers, would arouse no suspicion that only the nude name 

 there occurred; secondly, in the Manual of Conchology, vol. ix, 



