PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 329 
Malayia. These are Ph. godefroyi, the only species peculiar 
to the islands; a second species of this genus (Ph. montana) 
is Malayan; while the third worm belongs to a distinct 
genus (Dichogaster damonis), closely allied to an African 
and Central American genus (Benhamia), and there is some 
reason to believe that it is an accidental importation. 
The New Hebrides present us with one peculiar species of 
the Malayan genus (Ph. esafate), while a second species (Ph. 
upolwensis) is found also in Samoa. 
In the Solomons there is one peculiar species (Ph. solo- 
mons), while Ph. lorie occurs in New Guinea, and Ph. mon- 
tane@ is found in several of the Malay islands, as well as in 
New Britain. 
Even in New Guinea, only five species of earthworms as 
yet. have bean recorded. Of these, four species of Pheretima 
appear to be endemic, but evidently Oriental in origin ; 
while Benhamia malarmata is African, and is regarded as 
an jmported alien. 
So that, apart from New Caledonia, the earthworm fauna 
of the northern part of the “ Melanesian Plateau ” shows no 
affinity to that of New Zealand, but is decidedly of Indo- 
Malayan origin. 
We have, then, some confirmation of Hedley’s views as to 
a centre of radiation from New Guinea eastwards and south- 
wards ; but New Guinea must have recaived its earthworms 
from Indo-Malayia before the isolation of the individual 
islands, but after the separation from it of Antipodea. 
In concluding these remarks upon Antipodea, I will again 
eraphasise the facts. 
New Zealand and its outlying islands contain 30 recorded 
species of earthworms (included in 10 genera), of which 19 
species belong to seven endemic and peculiar genera, which 
are all Acanthodrilids. Of the non-peculiar genera, 
one (with only two representatives in New Zealand) 
is Australian; a second (with only two _ species) 
appears to be American in origin; while the 
third genus (Votiodrilus) has most of its remaining repre- 
sentatives in the Antarctic islands, the Cape of Good Hope, 
and South America, with a sparse representation in 
Australia. And it is a specially noteworthy fact that the 
species from Macquarie Island, and that occurring in the 
Auckland Islands, are more nearly allied to the South 
American and South African species than to those of the 
mainland of New Zealand. 
